MLK Day of Service

The Corporation for National & Community Service is urging community members across the nation on this MLK Day holiday to "Make it a day on, not a day off" by participating in service projects in honor of MLK Jr.  Campus Corps programs throughout the state are on board with this national initiative to promote service and diversity in honor of our national hero. Check out   the list of projects taking place on campuses across the state to see how you can be involved in your local community!


Aaniiih Nakoda College (Harlem, MT/ Fort Belknap Reservation)
Event: Read for Peace: Student Volunteers will be going into classrooms to read books about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as well as other peace-themed books to students who will then complete a corresponding art activity.
When: Friday January 13th, 2012
Where: Head Start of Harlem & the Immersion School
Contact: Alison Graham (agraham@mail.fbcc.edu/ 406-353-2607)


Dawson Community College (Glendive, MT)
Event: Community members will have their photos taken to be displayed in an exhibit along with an explanation of what diversity means to them. This exhibit will be on display both at the Glendive Boys & Girls Club as well as on the DCC campus.
When: TBD
Where: Glendive Boys & Girls Club/ DCC Campus
Contact: Jacob Kilgore (volunteer@dawson.edu/406-377-9460)


Fort Peck Community College (Poplar, MT/ Fort Peck Reservation)
Event: Read for Peace: On January 17th, the The Campus Corps program at FPCC will host a two part read for peace event intended to educate student's of Dr. King's legacy and will involve community members and parents in the process. There will be an afternoon reading project that will take place at the Ft. Peck Library, led by volunteers and aimed at pre-school aged head start children. This will be followed by an evening read-a-thon at Poplar Elementary Schools, during which teachers, volunteers and families will come together to enjoy a meal, read to the children, and work on art and written projects focusing on the theme of diversity.
When:  January 17th, 2012 (12:00pm-5:00pm)
Where: Poplar Public Library (afternoon Read for Peace) & Poplar Public Schools (evening read-a-thon)
Contact: Katie Wise (kwise@fpcc.edu/406-768-6333)


Flathead Valley Community College (Kalispell, MT)
Event: In collaboration with the Culinary Arts Program at FVCC, Campus Corps members have helped organize a free cooking class intended for community members currently receiving SNAP and Food Bank Benefits.  The class will offer creative ways to stretch one's dollar in order to provide nutritious non processed meals for their family.
When: January 16th, 2012
Where: FVCC Campus (777 Grandview Dr.)
Contact: Carson Booth (campuscorps@fvcc.edu/ 406-756-3372)


Montana State University (Bozeman, MT)
Event: Martin Luther King Jr. Day Bozeman Celebration & March : The Bozeman community will host a march to the Emerson Cultural Center where there will be music, speeches, and a variety of local non profits set up at tables. The objective of the event is to promote diversity, raise awareness of volunteer opportunities, and to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King in the process.
When: January 16th, 2012 (1:00pm-3:30pm)
Where: Emerson Cultural Center (111 South Grand Ave. Bozeman, MT 59715)
Contact: Alex Black (teamleader@montana.edu/ 406-994-7571)


MSU-Billings (Billings, MT)
Event: MLK Power of One Week: On Monday morning the MSU-B Campus Corps program will host have a bell ringing ceremony in Peaks to Plains Park and then proceed to the Atrium in our SUB building for a program that will include, a reenactment of an excerpt from one of King’s speeches, songs from the MSUB choir, an opportunity to sign MLK pledge cards and quotes read aloud by campus corps team members.  Ad
When: January 16th, 2012 (9:50am - 11:00am)
Where:  MSU-Billings SUB 225, 1500 University Dr. Billings, MT 59101

Contact: Hazel Todd (hazel.todd@msubillings.edu/ 406-896-5817)


Event: MLK Service Saturday - Students that participate in this month's Service Saturday event will visit different group homes in the Billings area and work with the residents to do an art project, play games, and read books, all of which will focus on diversity. Additionally, they will purchase new games and books to donate to the group homes. 
When: January 21st, 2012
Where: MSU Billings
Contact: Hazel Todd (hazel.todd@msubillings.edu/ 406-896-5817)

MSU- Great Falls (Great Falls, MT)

Event: MLK & Childhood Awareness The Boys’ and Girls’ Club and Campus Corps are going to work with children in their after-school programs to raise their awareness about Martin Luther King Jr.  Kindergarten through 4^th graders will participate in Read for Peace, a program in which volunteers read age appropriate books about MLK to students and allows for those children to reflect on ideas generated from their reading through poems and pictures.  5-12^th graders will participate in a film on MLK that highlights his goals and ideas of equality.  The film will be accompanied with a guest speaker. 
When: January 13th, 2012 (4:00pm-6:00pm)

      Where: Boys & Girls Club ( 600 1st Ave SW, Great Falls, MT 59404
   Contact: T.C. Knutson (campuscorps@msugf.edu/ 406-771-4324)

MSU- Northern (Havre, MT)

Event: In an effort to honor this vision and the work and legacy of Dr. King and raise awareness about appreciating diversity in our community, MSU-Northern plans to host a free luncheon and art exhibit on campus. The lunch will be open to all students, faculty and the public, will include a presentation of Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech and will display local community members’ and students’ art pieces focused on diversity. After this event to celebrate diversity and Dr. King, the art will be on display on campus and open to the public for a week after. Artists will have the option to donate their piece for a silent auction and proceeds will go towards the Havre Food bank, an organization that fills the crucial need of providing food to community members in need.

When: Primarily 1/18/12 (and art exhibit open 1/18/12-1/27/12)
Where: UM Northern Student Union Building Ballroom

Contact: Grace Milanowski (campuscorps@msun.edu/ 406-265-3577)


MSU - Western (Dillon, MT)

Event: Read for Peace. Student volunteers at UM-W have expanded this program to apply to students enrolled in K-12, altering the projects to ensure that they are age appropriate for each audience. They will read stories to classrooms in elementary and middle school and complete an accompanying art project afterwards. The UM-W Campus Corps program has also organized a "freedom speech" writing competition with a local high school English class. The event will culminate on January 16th with a community event during which the top 3 speech writers will deliver their speeches for the local community and the art work created by students in local classrooms will be displayed.  

When: TBD
Where: Dillon Elementary/Beaverhead County High School

Contact: Cheyanne Marcy (campuscorps@umwestern.edu/406-683-7202)

Montana Tech of the UM (Butte, MT)

Event: "Stop, Drop, & Read" Children will have a “day off” of school but a “day on” of learning. Stop Drop and Read will take place at two local fire stations, one in the uptown area and one in the downtown area. At each location, firefighters will read a story to the children, followed by a tour of the fire station. The firefighters will also give a short presentation on fire safety. Local veterans will present the children with and American flag and lead them through the pledge of allegiance. At the end of the event, McDonald’s will provide refreshments for the children, and each child will be able to choose a book of their very own to take home with them so they can start their own reading library.

When: January 16th, 2012

Where: Butte Fire Dept. (1:00pm-2:30pm)

Contact: Sean Cochrane (SCochrane@mtech.edu/406-496-4692)

Rocky Mountain College (Billings, MT)

Event: We will have a few activities going on between January 9th-31st to celebrate MLK day and community service. From 1/9-1/31 we will be doing a canned food drive that will be part of our April Canstruction event that will benefit the Billings Food Bank and Family Services Inc. On 1/17 in partnership with Rocky's Student Activities group we will be having students make cards that will be passed out to children at the local hospital, we also be using their activity promotion areas around campus to highlight the importance of community service. In partnership with our Physician's Assistants program we will be promoting and encouraging students, staff and faculty to sign up for the blood drive scheduled on February 9th. On 1/26 and 1/27 some Rocky students will volunteer to help out with the annual Billings Project Homeless Connect. Lastly we will also staff a table during the lunch hours on the Mondays in January to promote upcoming community service activities and MLK day information.

When: January 9th - January 31st
Where: Various Locations

Contact: Jill Washburn (campuscorps@rocky.edu/ 406-238-7394)

Stone Child College (Box Elder, MT/Rocky Boy Reservation)

Event: Read for PeaceIn the spirit of Martin Luther King, volunteers at SCC will come together to promote a more just and peaceful world, starting with education at the lowest levels.  Volunteers will sign up to read to students at the local Head Start over a span of 5 days. They have selected to read 'The Peace Book' by Todd Parr which deals with simple and practical issues that the kids can grasp and put into practice even at their young age, laying a strong foundation for future growth.

When: January 16th-20th, 2012
Where:  Head Start/Stone Child College (8294Box Elder Rd.)

Contact: Michael Yegerlehner (myegerlehner@stonechild.edu/ 573-822-6171)

University of Montana (Missoula, MT)

Event: The National Coalition Building Institute will be hosting a MLK Day rally and parade including speakers and live music.  During the rally, representatives from the Missoula AIDS Council and Campus Corps volunteers from UM will be collecting clothes to benefit Project Homeless Connect(PHC).  PHC is a one day event in late January that provides showers, food, legal advice, id help and other aid to the homeless population of Missoula.  The clothes collected by volunteers at the rally will be given to community members in need during the PHC event.

When: January 16th, 2012 (10:00am-2:00pm)

Where: Caras Park, downtown Missoula

Contact: Shanna Ungate (shanna.ungate@mso.umt.edu/406-243-5531)