Campus MLK Celebration to Focus on 'Courage to Lead'

This year’s commemoration of the life and work of Martin Luther King Jr. includes an ambitious slate of events organized by faculty, staff, and students. It also celebrates the life of Julian Bond, who gave the 2015 Martin Luther King Jr. Lecture at Georgia Tech. He died on Aug. 15, 2015. 

This year, Jeff Johnson, a D.C.-based award-winning journalist, social activist, and political commentator, will speak on the topic of “Unclaimed Legacy: Who Will Lead the Next Social Movement?” The lecture will take place on Jan. 13 at 3 p.m. in the Student Center Ballroom. 

More events are listed below. For a full overview, visit www.c.gatech.edu/mlk.

Campuswide Student Celebration
Jan. 14, 7 p.m., Student Center Ballroom
Student speeches, cultural performances, and a candlelighting ceremony. Reception to follow.

Focus Program
Jan. 14–17, Georgia Tech Hotel and Conference Center
Focus is one of the nation’s premier programs for raising awareness of graduate education. It is designed to attract the brightest underrepresented minority students and encourage them to pursue graduate degrees at Georgia Tech.

Arts@Tech Presents Roger Guenveur Smith: Rodney King
Jan. 15–16, 8 p.m. (each night), Ferst Center for the Arts
History, poetry, and tragedy collide when Roger Guenveur Smith tackles the thorny odyssey of Rodney King. More information at www.arts.gatech.edu/ferstcenter. Discounts available for faculty and staff.

MLK Day of Service
Jan. 18, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Participants will serve in teams and engage in service projects with Metro Atlanta community partners. To register, visit www.engage.gatech.edu.  

MLK Commemorative Service
Jan. 18, 10 a.m., Ebenezer Baptist Church
Sponsored by The King Center, this annual church service is an ecumenical endeavor, engaging members of various religious traditions and state, national, and international governments. This year, 20 spaces will be available to the Georgia Tech community through the MLK Day of Service program. Visit www.engage.gatech.edu to register. If you are not able to register through Georgia Tech, the event is open to the public.

MLK “Sunday” Supper
Jan. 21, 6 to 8 p.m., Bill Moore Student Success Center, President’s Suite
Come together over a meal to engage in meaningful dialogue about the 2016 MLK Celebration events, King’s legacy, and the courage to lead. To register, visit www.engage.gatech.edu.

The Art of Civil Disobedience
Jan. 27, 6 to 8 p.m., Press Room A, Student Success Center
Students will learn how to express their desire for social justice through the arts and have the opportunity to create their own work to make an impact for their cause.

Courage to Lead: Student Panel
Jan. 28, 6 to 8 p.m., Press Room B, Student Success Center
Students will hear from peers who have advocated for their own social justice causes.