A scholarship (named The Ravenell (Ricky) Keller III Scholarship Award)
was set up at the University of Virginia, affords talented
African-American students the opportunity to participate in
international exchange programs.
Graduated with honors from the University of Virginia in 1985.
Following graduation from UVA, Ricky enjoyed a rewarding internship at
the Morgan Stanley investment firm in New York before beginning his
graduate work at Harvard University. At Harvard, he was a member of the
Harvard Community Volunteers Association and the Harvard Afro-American
Student Union.
He was a member of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity, the IMP Society of
Leaders, University Guide Service and the Board of Trustees for the
Class of 1985.
Ricky participated in the First Years Seminars program and received the
First Year Academic Achievement Award, the Afro-American Scholars
Award, the Fraternity Leadership Achievement Award and the John Kenneth
Crispell Memorial Award.
His role as a knife-wielding street kid in the Hal Ashby cult classic, Being There, is very important. Although he's in only one scene at the beginning, his dialogue to Peter Sellers about giving "a message to Raphael" continues throughout the film.