Augustana hosts week-long Martin Luther King Jr. events

Martin Luther King Jr

The Augustana University Diversity and Inclusion office is collaborating with community organizations on several events honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his legacy 

Schedule of Events

Wednesday, January 13: Children's Day hosted by the After School Program at the Multi-Cultural Center (515 N. Main Avenue) from 3:15- 5 p.m. Winter survival kits will be distributed 

Thursday, January 14: Education Day hosted by the Sioux Falls School District, featuring community leaders and higher education educators presenting on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., what he did for society, and what can we do to further his work in Sioux Falls. Schools involved are Hawthorne Elementary, Whittier Middle School, and Washington High School 

Friday, January 15: MLK Dream Dinner and Panel Discussion, beginning at 6:15 p.m. in the 3-in-1 Room of Morrison Commons. Following the dinner, a panel of influential community leaders and students will discuss their perceptions of Dr. Martin Luther King's dream and how the communities in Sioux Falls coincide with each other 

Tickets are $12. All proceeds will support the MLK Week celebration. For more details, contact Mark Blackburn at 605.274.4313 or mark.blackburn@augie.edu 

Saturday, January 16: Augustana University Volunteer Programs will be conducting a campus-wide MLK Challenge, a service initiative for all students, faculty and staff. Participants will complete group challenges based on local community needs while honoring Dr. King's legacy. The challenge will begin at 10 a.m. in the Morrison Commons 3 -in-1 room 

Sunday, January 17: Community worship service, conducted by All Nations Church. The service will begin at 6 p.m. and will be held at the University of Sioux Falls, Z-Hall, 1101 W. 22nd Street 

Monday, January 18: Commemorative program and closing ceremony, beginning at 7 p.m. in the Edith Mortenson Center Theatre, featuring renowned speaker Rev. Spencer Turnipseed. Turnipseed, a native of Montgomery, Alabama, is a third generation clergyman who comes from a line of prominent social justice advocates in the South. Members of the Turnipseed family were bold, courageous champions for civil rights in the 1950s and 1960s. They became allies with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. beginning in 1954, when Turnipseed's father, Rev. Dr. Andrew Turnipseed, served as a pastor for a Methodist Church located just two blocks from Dr. King’s Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery