Lee to honor MLK with campus events
In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Lee University’s Faculty Cultural Diversity Committee will host a variety of special events around campus during the week of Jan. 16-20.
MLK week will commemorate the work, theology and philosophy of Dr. King and will include a series of lectures, a chapel service, film showing and a student panel, according to a press release.
The events will provide an opportunity for students and the local community to engage with one another and MLK’s work, according to Associate Professor of Humanities Dr. Mary McCampbell.
“These events are an invitation for the Lee and Cleveland communities to celebrate diversity and to grow in our sense of empathy and understanding,” McCampbell said in a release. “We also want to explore the prophetic truth of Dr. King’s famous assertion: ‘Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’’”
The celebration will kick off on Monday, Jan. 16 with the annual Dream Keeper awards ceremony and end on Friday, Jan. 20 with “Help Me Be Sensitive," a workshop and discussion led by Lee’s Student Leadership Council. A full schedule of the week’s events are included at the end of this article.
Assistant Professor of Sociology Dr. Arlie Tagayuna will also be leading a discussion about MLK and the criminal justice system following the screening of the 2016 documentary film “13th” on Wednesday, Jan. 18.
“We need to understand that dealing with the criminal justice system is a much more compounded problem both institutionally, culturally, socially and even more so spiritually,” Tagayuna said. “I may touch on like what should be our Christian response to the crime in our society. I’m not going to be prescribing anything, but it would be nice to visit the theology.”
Jill Welborn, the director of student development, believes the events will provide much-needed discussion and education on important topics.
“This will be a time to discuss discrimination as it relates to race, gender and religion, and a chance to learn together how to steward our privilege,” Welborn said in a release.
All events are free and open to the public.
For more information, contact Dr. McCampbell at 423-614-8353 or mmccampbell@leeuniversity.edu.
