Hundreds attend 23rd annual Martin Luther King Jr. Breakfast
Approximately 350 attendees listened to keynote speaker Dalitso Sulamoyo, Ph.D., at the 23rd annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Breakfast hosted by College of DuPage and Benedictine University.
The breakfast, co-sponsored by Nicor Gas, honors the legacy of the renowned civil rights leader and celebrates the diversity of community colleges.
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Born and raised in Malawi, Sulamoyo moved to the United States to pursue higher education and escape the poverty that had ravaged his homeland. As Chief Executive Officer of the Champaign County Regional Planning Commission, Sulamoyo oversees a multifaceted government agency with over 100 different federal, state, and local grants and contracts.
He spent 16 years as president and CEO of the Illinois Association of Community Action Agencies, which serve economically challenged citizens and communities of Illinois, and is past president of the Illinois Community Action Development Corporation, a statewide affordable housing development corporation.
Sulamoyo is recipient of the Illinois Association of Community Action Agencies' Martin Luther King Jr. Service Award, and the Illinois Head Start Association's Martin Luther King Jr. Humanitarian Award. In 2017 he was the inaugural inductee of the Community Action Hall Fame in Illinois. He graduated magna cum laude from Illinois College with a B.A. in political science and international relations, received a graduate certificate in public sector labor relations, and completed two masters degrees in political studies and public administration from the University of Illinois at Springfield. He holds a Ph.D. in organization development from Benedictine University.
In addition to Sulamoyo's keynote speech, the breakfast included words of welcome from Benedictine President Dr. Michael Brophy and College of DuPage President Dr. Ann Rondeau, and the naming of COD's 2018 MLK scholarship recipients, Kyra Singleton (Villa Park) and Kelly Ware (Glendale Heights).
Singleton and Ware, along with two students from Benedictine University, were recognized for their winning essays, which detailed how Dr. King's ideals have made a direct impact on their lives. Both College of DuPage students will receive $1,000 for their efforts.