Celebration scheduled for Jan. 13-19
Belmont will continue its annual tradition of honoring the life and legacy of American Civil Rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with a celebration week, Jan. 13-19. Each year, the University’s festivities coincide with the national observance of Dr. King’s birthday, and many events are open to the Belmont community and the public during the week.
Belmont will kick off MLK Week with the annual MLK Joint Day of Service, Saturday, Jan. 13, where students from all Nashville colleges and universities come together for service projects across the city, living out Dr. King’s dream of unity and hope. Vanderbilt University Distinguished Professor Michael Eric Dyson will share words of encouragement to send off the students in a keynote address, “It Starts with Me.”
Monday, Jan. 15
Although campus will close to acknowledge MLK Jr. Day Monday, Belmont's Black Student Association will lead a trip to Memphis, Tennessee where students will visit historic sites like the Lorraine Motel and the Underground Railroad Museum as well as enjoy the iconic Beale Street where music legends like B.B. King and Rufus Thomas got their start.
Tuesday, Jan. 16
Faculty and staff are invited to participate in Real Talk for Faculty & Staff Only from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. (Barbara Massey Rogers Center boardroom)
A panel discussion titled, “Seeing the Civil Rights Movement Through a Different Lens – The Jewish Perspective” will return to campus during MLK Week for a second year. Panelists will share first-hand experiences and reflections on what it was like, as members of a religiously marginalized community, to offer encouragement to others who were also feeling the sting of oppression and marginalization during the Civil Rights movement. The panel is scheduled from 11 a.m. - noon. (Fourth floor of the Janet Ayers Building, D)
Wednesday, Jan. 17
Dr. Candice Storey Lee, vice chancellor for athletics and university affairs and athletic director of Vanderbilt University, will share her story of experiencing how God is building what Dr. King called “the Beloved Community” at 10 a.m. in Gabhart chapel. Lee is a dynamic trailblazer who is Vanderbilt’s first female Athletic Director and the first Black woman to head an SEC athletics program. To continue her chapel keynote address, she will also speak at a community luncheon on the fourth floor of the Janet Ayers Academic Center (C &D) at 11:30 a.m.
Thursday, Jan. 18
Students are invited to participate in the student-only Real Talk from 4-6 p.m. in McWhorter 110.
Friday, Jan. 19
Dr. D’Angelo Taylor, inaugural vice president of Hope, Unity and Belonging, will examine the historical connection between the Civil Rights Movement and Dr. King’s legacy to modern efforts aimed at creating a culture of belonging during times of uncertainty at 10 a.m. in Gabhart Chapel.
A full schedule along with details, times and locations for all MLK Week events are available on the MLK Week website.