On January 17, the Office of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Office of the President, Division of Student Affairs, and Development and Alumni Engagement Office partnered for the second annual MLK Day of Service. This day is a federal holiday labeled by Congress as a “day on, not a day off,” referring to the importance of using the free time towards taking positive action for those in the community and beyond.
Stevens celebrated the day by inviting the student body, faculty, staff, and alumni for a complimentary breakfast with guest speaker Aisha Lawrey and student performances in the University Center Complex Tech Flex Auditorium. This was followed by an afternoon of various volunteering opportunities in Hoboken and Jersey City. Students then returned for an afternoon reception including the keynote speaker Tahesha Way as well as more performances.
The first speaker, Aisha Lawrey, is a STEM advocate and Stevens alumna. She focuses on increasing the presence of women and minorities in engineering. Lawrey currently works for Amazon Web Services to show pathways to becoming professionals in the cloud workforce. She spoke about her childhood, education, and career as a Black woman. These stories connected to her passion for inspiring others and leading change. The second speaker was Tahesha Way, New Jersey’s 34th Secretary of State. She oversees the State Division of Electronics which ensures elections are conducted properly and everyone has access to voting. She spoke about empowering voters in the same way that MLK fought for the voiceless to have a voice. A step performance was also completed by members of Alpha Phi Alpha, the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity established for African-American men in 1906.
Between the introduction and reception, Stevens offered participants the choice between ten service opportunities. On campus, volunteers could write letters for hospice patients through Grace Healthcare services or senior community residents through Love for our Elders. Materials were provided and students learned about each organization while writing the letters. Donation collection drives were held for Round 2 Resources which collects women’s clothes and kitchen supplies, Garden State CDC which needs liquid HE laundry detergent, bath towels, twin sheets, and twin blankets, and the Boys and Girls Club of Hudson Country which wants new and lightly used books for middle and elementary school students. All three of these collection drives will continue accepting donations until January 31 for anyone who was not able to attend the event or did not bring their donations with them.
Off-campus events included Lunchtime Ministries and the Hoboken Food Pantry which both provide food for those in need. The Hoboken Food Pantry also supplies supplemental hygiene products and pet supplies. Volunteers could also spend their time at the Hoboken Charter School or Elysian Charter School to do basic organization and overall provide support where needed. The last volunteer option was Computers 4 People which works to create a sustainable solution to the mass pollution of e-waste and the digital divide in New York City.
The MLK Day of Service aimed to encourage the student body, faculty, staff, and alumni to do service work on the day of service with the hope that they would continue their efforts afterward. Overall, the event was a success with more than 300 in-person and 68 virtual participants.
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