Nazareth's annual MLK Commemoration features keynote speaker Simeon Banister on Jan. 16

Open to the public and the MEDIA is welcome to attend the event.

Rochester, NY (01/06/2023) — Nazareth commemorates the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on Monday, January 16, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., with a special program that is open to the public. Keynote speaker Simeon Banister, leader of the Rochester Area Community Foundation and the Greater Rochester Martin Luther King Jr. Commission, will speak on the theme Roots for Change: Approaches to Social Justice Action. The MLK commemoration takes place in the Nazareth College Arts Center's Callahan Theater. A livestream is also offered.

Prior to the event, workshops are available for the campus community at 10:30 a.m.; students, faculty, and staff may choose from a choice of workshops to learn how the community is taking action on health, housing, or education injustices.

Classes are suspended for a two-hour block that morning so that students, faculty, and staff may all attend.

Banister is president and chief executive officer of Rochester Area Community Foundation. He is the president of the Greater Rochester Martin Luther King Jr. Commission. His career spans across the public and private sectors, having worked for the New York State Senate, the state Department of Taxation and Finance, the State University of New York, and several private commercial real estate firms. Simeon earned his undergraduate degree in political science at North Carolina Central University and his master's of divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary. He serves on the boards of the University of Rochester Medical Center, the Congressional Award Foundation, The Children's Agenda, and the Genesee Land Trust.

Nazareth students, faculty, and staff are also invited to join the RochesterCares King for a Day service event on Saturday, January 21 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Nazareth participants will join those from other area colleges at East High School for a kick-off celebration, then travel to one of many community service sites.

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President and CEO of the Rochester Area Community Foundation speaks at Nazareth's MLK Day event on January 16.