MEDIA, Pa. — The Center for Social Impact at Penn State Brandywine held MLK 2023 week from Jan. 16-19 to honor the late Martin Luther King Jr. The week consisted of volunteering, connecting and learning opportunities for the Penn State community to participate in, both in person and online.

Students, faculty and staff had the opportunity to sign up for a volunteer initiative with their day off on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. On Tuesday, the Center for Social Impact collaborated with Student Engagement to host a screening of “Till,” a film based on the story of Mamie Till-Mobely’s fight for justice after her 14-year-old son Emmitt Till was lynched in 1955.

Lyndon Greer, a first-year student who attended the “Till” screening, said he liked MLK 2023 because of what it stands for. “MLK 2023, to me, is all about freedom of speech and diversity,” he said.

"What To Do Wednesday," a recurring event on Wednesdays that hosts different activities at Brandywine, featured bracelet making and a student involvement fair as part of MLK 2023. Students were able to learn how to access resources available to them on campus, as well as participate in a service project aimed to unite the Brandywine community.

“It's cool to learn more about Martin Luther King Jr.,” said Benjamin Keller, a first-year student, who took part in the service project. “He was a lot more radical than people give him credit for. I feel like that's a part of him that's sort of not taught as much.”

The last day of MLK 2023 featured a town hall and an update on the Restorative Justice, Equity, Anti-Racism League (REAL), a group of students, staff and faculty working together to create an anti-hate, anti-racism council at Brandywine. Those in attendance were able to ask questions about the current bias reporting process in place and give suggestions on what members of the Penn State community can do be both proactive and reactive to those situations. 

Katy Carpenter, program and marketing coordinator of the Center for Social Impact, mentioned that one Martin Luther King Jr. quote that really stood out to her is “Everybody can be great because anybody can serve.”

“This made me think a lot about what are the ways that we can serve our communities every day, not just during MLK week, but every day,” said Carpenter. “At the Center for Social Impact and during the events this week, students can get involved and be active in service across the campus community.”