A Different World is an American television sitcom which aired for six seasons on NBC from September 24, 1987 – July 9, 1993. It is a spin-off series from The Cosby Show and originally centered on Denise Huxtable (Lisa Bonet) and the life of students at Hillman College, a fictional historically black college in the state of Virginia, inspired by student life at Howard University. After Bonet's departure in the first season, the remainder of the series primarily focused more on Southern belle Whitley Gilbert (Jasmine Guy) and mathematics whiz Dwayne Wayne (Kadeem Hardison).