Holly Elizabeth Robinson Peete (born September 18, 1964) is an American actress and singer. She is known for her roles as Judy Hoffs on the Fox TV police drama "21 Jump Street", Vanessa Russell on the ABC sitcom "Hangin' with Mr. Cooper", and Dr. Malena Ellis on the NBC/WB sitcom "For Your Love". She also served as one of the original co-hosts of the CBS Daytime talk show, "The Talk". After graduating from high school, Peete entered Sarah Lawrence College in New York. Holly Robinson Peete majored in Psychology and French. After she graduated in 1986, she considered attending graduate school and perhaps working in languages for the U.S. State Department. However, she decided to give an acting career a chance. Within a short time, Peete found roles on a television series and in two films. Peete's children's book, "My Brother Charlie", won her an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work in March 2011. In 2012 the book was awarded the Dolly Gray Children's Literature Award. In March 2016, a reality series debuted titled "For Peete's Sake", documenting the everyday life of her family.