COD, Benedictine to host annual MLK breakfast

College of DuPage and Benedictine University will sponsor “The Power of Community,” the 17th annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Breakfast from 8 to 9:30 a.m. Monday, Jan. 16, at the Krasa Center Dining Room on the Benedictine campus, 5700 College Road in Lisle.

The event, which honors the legacy of the civil rights leader and celebrates the diversity of community colleges, will feature speaker Mawi Asgedom, educator, author and President of Mental Karate.

Asgedom fled civil war in Ethiopia and spent three years in a Sudanese refugee camp before immigrating to the U.S. He overcame poverty, language barriers and personal tragedy to graduate from Wheaton North High School before attending Harvard University where he recently gave the commencement address to an audience of 30,000.

Asgedom has written eight books including his bestselling memoir, “Of Beetles and Angels: A Boy's Remarkable Journey from a Refugee Camp to Harvard,” and has spoken to students and educators across the country. A nationally-recognized educator and graduate of the Kellogg School of Management, he has trained leaders at Harvard's Graduate School of Education, the Midwest Principals' Center and at international conferences.

He is president of Mental Karate, an organization that trains educators to increase student achievement by engaging and motivating students. Citing the impact of his work, the Illinois Association of Teachers of English named Asgedom the 2006 Author of the Year.

Benedictine University President William J. Carroll, Asgedom, and COD President Dr. Robert L. Breuder will lead a breakout session, “Living Together,” immediately following the breakfast. Asgedom also will be available for book signings following the session.

Tickets are $25 and can be purchased through COD's McAninch Arts Center Ticket Office at (630) 942-4000, or at www.atthemac.org.

For more information, visit: www.cod.edu/MLK.