Berea College staff, faculty and students have organized a series of events in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, on Monday, January 19, 2015, including a convocation featuring Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski, President of University of Maryland, Baltimore County, as speaker. The observance activities are co-sponsored by the Office of the President; Black Cultural Center; Carter G. Woodson Center for Interracial Education; African and African American Studies; Campus Life; Center for Excellence in Learning Through Service (CELTS); Willis D. Weatherford Jr. Campus Christian Center; Loyal Jones Appalachian Center; and Technology Resource Center. The public is invited to participate.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day Annual Celebration Schedule of Events – January 19, 2015
12:30p Musical Warm-Up – Berea Dining Services (basement of Alumni Building) Open to the community
1:00p March to Phelps Stokes Auditorium departing from Dining Services
1:30p Music of Protest—Community Sing, Phelps Stokes Auditorium. Led by members of the Black Music Ensemble, Folk & Roots Ensemble, Bluegrass Ensemble and Berea Community Choirs
2:30 Refreshments served
3:00p Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Convocation – “The Role of Youth in the Civil Rights Movement: Reflections on Birmingham” at Phelps Stokes Auditorium, Berea College, Dr. Freeman Hrabowski, President, University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski
Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski, President of UMBC (University of Maryland, Baltimore County) since 1992, is a consultant on science and math education to national agencies, universities, and school systems. He was recently named by President Obama to chair the newly created President’s Advisory Commission on Educational Excellence for African Americans. He also chaired the National Academies’ committee that produced the recent report, Expanding Underrepresented Minority Participation: America’s Science and Technology Talent at the Crossroads.
Named one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World by Time (2012) and one of America’s Best Leaders by U.S. News & World Report (2008), Hrabowski also received TIAA-CREF’s Theodore M. Hesburgh Award for Leadership Excellence (2011), the Carnegie Corporation’s Academic Leadership Award (2011), and the Heinz Award (2012) for contributions to improving the “Human Condition.”
At the convocation, Dr. Hrabowski will share perspectives on the Civil Rights movement, including being jailed for participating in the Birmingham Children’s March, and his insights from a career in education. Although challenges persist, he believes each of us can inspire positive change.
For more information please contact the Carter G. Woodson Center for Interracial Education at: 859-985-3785