The start of each spring semester is marked by Emory’s annual King Week celebration — a program designed to inspire reflection and honor the life and legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
While the national week of observance begins on Jan. 13, Emory’s programs kick off on Thursday, Jan. 15 and continue through Saturday, Jan. 24. The week is a collaborative effort of units across the university, supported by the Office of Spiritual and Religious Life, and events take place across Emory schools and campuses.
This year’s theme, selected by the King Center, is “Mission Possible II: Building Community, Uniting a Nation the Nonviolent Way.” It builds on the 2025 theme, also dubbed “Mission Possible” and focused on nonviolence.
The Rev. Gregory McGonigle, university chaplain and dean of religious life, says Emory’s offerings will explore that theme and much more.
“This King Week provides deep opportunities to reflect, learn, remember, grow and serve, especially as we think about democracy, caring for one another and doing what is right,” he says.
“This year, I’m especially reflecting on what it means to be part of what King called the ‘world house,’ where we expand our consciousness and compassion to work for the wellbeing of all,” McGonigle says. “And this year Emory is celebrating a Year of Compassion — which is another great invitation to recommit to compassion in the form of the ‘beloved community’ to which King called us.”
Below are some of the many inspiring King Week events at Emory. For a full list, check the university’s King Week website.
Worship services
Emory’s weekly “Beloved Community” worship service is named in honor of King’s vision, and each year it hosts a guest speaker for King Week.
This year’s service is on Sunday, Jan. 18, at 11 a.m. in Cannon Chapel, followed by a free lunch. The Rev. Cassandra Henderson will deliver the keynote sermon, open to the public.
Henderson is the executive director of the Interfaith Children’s Movement, which champions childhood well-being throughout Georgia. She is also a Candler School of Theology alumna.
Her sermon, McGonigle says, will explore “how we can apply King’s teachings of justice to caring for children today.”
Oxford College will host its own King Week service and celebration on Wednesday, Jan. 21, at 7:30 p.m. at Old Church — just down the road from the historic campus in the city of Oxford. The Rev. Robert Franklin, James T. and Berta R. Laney Chair in Moral Leadership at Candler and former president of Morehouse College, will deliver the keynote address. The event is free and open to the public.
On Thursday, Jan. 22, Candler will host a commemorative service at 11 a.m. in Cannon Chapel, featuring the Rev. Dr. Jack L. Bomar, presiding bishop at Atlanta’s Hillside International Truth Center. The service is open to all and will be livestreamed on Candler’s social media accounts.
“These events remind us why ‘the dean of American preaching’ Gardner C. Taylor once called King ‘the most authentic spiritual genius in the land,’” says Nichole R. Phillips, associate professor in the practice of religion and society and director of the Black Church Studies Program at Candler. “King’s brilliance did not come from strategy alone but from a spirit and heart continually bowed in prayer, seeking wisdom for action.”
Days of service
Service is always an important component of King Week, and the annual Emory Day On event is a perfect example.
This year’s Day On takes place Saturday, Jan. 24, and is planned by Volunteer Emory and the Center for Civic and Community Engagement. It offers more than a dozen opportunities for Emory students to get involved on and off campus.
“Emory Day On has become one of the most beloved parts of King Week because it turns Dr. King’s values into action, service, equity and collective responsibility lived out side by side,” says Byron Brown, director of student-led community engagement at the center. “I’m especially looking forward to seeing how this year’s projects bring people together across differences and create moments of connection that last well beyond the day itself.”
Volunteer locations include the American Cancer Society Atlanta Hope Lodge, the Emory Center for Student Wellbeing, Metro Atlanta Urban Farm and many more. There’s even an opportunity to care for cats while volunteering with Furkids ATL, a local no-kill animal shelter.
Students, who should register for Day On through the Emory Hub, will check in at the Math and Science Center at 10 a.m. before proceeding to their service assignments. Registration is required, and space is limited.
Oxford’s Day of Service will take place a few days prior — on Monday, Jan. 19 — with a variety of local projects, from volunteering at Salvation Army to cleaning up local trails. Students, who can sign up for projects via OpenEmory, will meet at the Oxford Student Center at 9 a.m. to check in before dispersing. Afterwards, there will be time for reflection and a free lunch.
Discussions, gatherings and screenings
The first official event of Emory’s King Week celebration is Emory Law’s keynote address on Thursday, Jan. 15, in Tull Auditorium at 12:15 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.
This year’s speaker is Jasmine Burton, the CEO, executive director and founder of Wish for WASH — an organization that addresses global water, sanitation and hygiene issues. Her talk is titled “Beyond Service Hours: From Transactional to Transformative Engagement.”
After Burton’s speech, Ifeoma Ajunwa, Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Law and founding director of Emory Law’s AI and the Future of Work program, will lead a panel featuring: James Roland, Sr., director of the Center for Civic and Community Engagement and executive director of Atlanta Urban Debate League; and Careisha Moore, attorney and former president and CEO of musician Usher Raymond's New Look Foundation.
On Friday, Jan. 16, Kylie Smith, Emory associate professor and director of the Center for Healthcare History and Policy, will discuss her new book “Jim Crow in the Asylum” at Charis Books and More in Decatur. The talk begins at 7 p.m. and will feature panelists Jennifer Grant, assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health at Emory School of Medicine, and Vanessa Jackson, a social worker, doula and owner of a local healing practice.
Emory MLK Scholars past and present will come together for a breakfast reception on Sunday, Jan. 18. The event is open to current scholars and alumni who participated in the program. The MLK scholarship, now part of the Woodruff Scholars program, has a rich history of supporting service-minded students.
Recognizing a commitment to service is a common theme throughout the week.
The MLK Service Awards — which honor those in Atlanta who live by King’s motto, “the time is always ripe to do what is right” — will be presented on Thursday, Jan. 22, at 4 p.m. at Goizueta Business School, Room W525.
The theme for this year’s ceremony is “The Work Continues: Honoring the Past, Serving the Present, Shaping the Future.” It is sponsored by Goizueta, the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing, Rollins School of Public Health and Emory School of Medicine. Registration is required.
Also on Jan. 22, the Emory Department of African American Studies will host a free, public screening of the documentary “Selma at 60.” The movie will begin at 5 p.m. in Convocation Hall. The screening will be followed by a panel featuring students in conversation with Carol Anderson — Robert W. Woodruff Professor of African American Studies — and Bernard Fraga, Ann and Michael Hankin Distinguished Professor of Political Science.
That same evening, the National Center for Civil and Human Rights in downtown Atlanta will host a fireside chat featuring Clint Fluker — senior director of culture, community, and partner engagement at Michael C. Carlos Museum and Emory Libraries — and Andra Gillespie, professor of political science and director of the James Weldon Johnson Institute for Race and Difference. The pair will discuss Fluker's work curating and creating art that is expressive, thought-provoking, and socially relevant. Tickets are $30 and the event starts at 6:30 p.m.
King in the archives
Engaging with the King Center’s theme, the Woodruff Health Sciences Center Library has launched a new digital exhibition titled “Mission Possible 2: Building Community Through Health Fairness — Atlanta’s Co-Authored Research Legacy.” Featuring selections co-authored by researchers from Emory and Morehouse School of Medicine, the exhibit explores how Emory and various Atlanta partners translate King’s vision into public health action.
The Woodruff Library has also curated a special selection of resources that explores King’s life and legacy. The works — selected by Erica Bruchko, African American Studies and U.S. history librarian, and James Steffen, humanities team leader at Woodruff Library — can be accessed through the library. Earlier this month, Bruchko published a blog post covering documentaries about King.
In honor of King Week at Emory, Emory students, faculty, staff and alumni can purchase discounted tickets to visit Atlanta’s newly reopened and expanded National Center for Civil and Human Rights, from Jan. 13–23 (not including Friday, Jan. 17). Tickets can be purchased online.
Read more about King Week offerings at Emory libraries.
Getting involved
The Emory Staff Council is sponsoring the first chance to get involved with a sandwich making party to support the Emory Community Fridge and Pantry on Friday, Jan. 16, at noon.
Volunteers will meet at Campus Services Building B, Training Room B, and can bring shelf-stable items for the pantry. Registration is required.
Off campus, Emory students, faculty and staff can volunteer to serve as a judge at the Atlanta Urban Debate League’s King Week high school debate tournament.
The tournament takes place on Saturday, Jan. 17, at Sutton Middle School’s sixth grade campus, beginning at 8:30 a.m. The league, which is part of Emory’s Center for Civic and Community Engagement, will provide training the morning of the tournament; no previous experience is required. Volunteers can sign up via the OpenEmory portal.
On the last day of King Week, the Barkley Forum will host a “World Café Dialogue” on Sunday, Jan. 25, at 11 a.m.
Held at the Emory Center for Ethics, the dialogue will explore the oral, reflective and communal nature of King’s sermons. King’s famous 1963 sermon “Strength to Love” inspired the theme for the event, which will include 100 high school speech and debate participants.
Participation is open to those enrolled in high school programs partnered with the Barkley Forum.
“King’s inner life shaped his outer vision, giving him the courage to confront the world’s deepest wounds with clarity and compassion,” Phillips says. “Emory’s King Week programming — from the service projects and celebration at Oxford College to the Beloved Community and Candler worship services, from the documentary ‘Selma at 60’ to the arts and activism gathering at the National Center for Civil and Human Rights — echoes that legacy.”