Saturday, January 13, 6 p.m.
Augustana College's Centennial Hall, 3703 Seventh Avenue, Rock Island IL
An award-winning orator and educator familiar from her appearances on BET, MSNBC, NBC, and numerous SiriusXM radio stations, Dr. Chandra Gill will serve as the keynote speaker for Augustana's annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration, with January 13's “The Time Is Now” event also featuring musical performances, a video presentation, and an opening ceremony boasting the Metropolitan Youth Program Drill Team.
The author of the recent book Black Genes – Black Genius: A Motivational Handbook to Empower Black Youth, Gill is also the Founder and CEO of Blackademically Speaking, a company dedicated to developing motivational content, products, and services with cutting-edge programs and philosophies specific to education. As part of the inaugural class for Gates Millennium Scholar’s Program, she was one of Chicago’s first African-American public school recipients at the graduate level, and was also inducted into Phi Delta Kappa with high honors after receiving her Ph.D. in Educational Policy Studies. Among Gill's numerous honors are mention as one of Chicago Woman magazine's “100 Women to Watch” and citation among “Chicago’s Top 40 Game Changers,” and she recently became a freelance contributor to Jet magazine.
Following its opening ceremony and remarks by Augustana's Michael Rogers, the Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration will feature an introduction by emcee Kit Ford from Grace City Church and St. Ambrose University, followed by an invocation by the House Church's Pastor Gregg Hampton and a welcome by Augustana College President Steve Bahls. In addition to Gill's keynote address, the Centennial Hall event will also include musician Kellen Myers and vocalist Trivia Barnes performing Billie Holiday's “Strange Fruit,” two selections by the Augustana Community Choir under the direction of Sam Mack Sr., the video presentation The Journey to Selma, and a reading titled “The Final Words of MLK.”
Admission to the Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration: The Time Is Now is free, and more information is available by calling Rogers at (309)794-8273 or visiting Augustana.edu.
