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Jan. 18, 2018 — More than 500 people gathered at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Power Leadership Breakfast to remember the life and work of Dr. King and to discuss how to bring about his dream of a greater, more equitable future. The annual event was held Jan. 13 at Collin College’s Spring Creek Campus.
The theme of this year’s breakfast was “Shades of Unity.” The event included a resolution from Gov. Greg Abbott presented by State Representative Matt Shaheen (District 66) and State Sen. Van Taylor (District 8), a proclamation from the city of Plano, an address by Keynote Speaker Dr. Zan Holmes, student presentations and performances, and the announcement of multiple scholarships.
The event honored the following students and community members:
- Collin College student Adriana Solis of Frisco was awarded the Charles Terry Jr. Scholarship named in honor of a volunteer who has given his time to Plano’s Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. celebrations for years as a steering committee chair and organizer. Solis is working on her core credits at Collin and plans to transfer to Texas Christian University to major in merchandising. She has served as a volunteer at four local elementary schools, Frisco Family Services, MainGait Therapeutic Horsemanship Center and has coached teen swimming. Her most meaningful volunteer experience was helping with the construction of Hope Park, a park for children with special needs.
- Funded by donations made at previous Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Leadership Breakfasts, three Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Unity Scholarships were distributed at this year’s event. The scholarships recognize selected Collin College students who have demonstrated a commitment to academic excellence and community involvement.
- Scholarship winner Monique Spence of Frisco plans to serve underprivileged communities as a doctor. She is the first child in her family to attend college and has worked as a middle school tutor for several years. She is an active member of Phi Theta Kappa honor society and currently serves as the chapter’s vice president of service.
- Scholarship winner Toluwani Ogunbayode of Plano is a business major. He plans to complete his associate degree at Collin and then transfer to Texas A&M University for a degree in agricultural economics. He dreams of applying his education to impact food production in the most rural parts of the Earth.
- Scholarship winner Eric Mugo of Allen is studying to be an actuary. He is working on his associate degree at Collin and hopes to transfer to the University of Texas at Dallas into an accelerated program to earn his bachelor’s and master’s degree at the same time. He is a native of Kenya who has served as a boy scout and a volunteer at his church.
- Raiven Davis McKinney was awarded scholarships sponsored by Alpha Kappa Alpha and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Davis is pursuing public service through politics because she wants to help minorities in America fight for equity and freedom. After Collin, she intends to transfer to the University of North Texas or Howard University to study political science and law.
Scholarships are awarded annually at the Plano Martin Luther King Jr. Power Breakfast, and donations for the scholarship fund are accepted throughout the year through the Collin College Foundation. For more information on making a gift to this fund, call 972.599.3145.
More photos of the breakfast event are available at www.collin.edu/webgalleries/mlkbreakfast2018.
Collin College serves more than 53,000 credit and continuing education students annually and offers more than 100 degrees and certificates in a wide range of disciplines. The only public college in the county, Collin College is a partner to business, government and industry, providing customized training and work force development. In addition, the college operates the Collin Higher Education Center, which serves 3,200 additional students each year in partnership with The University of Texas at Dallas, Texas Woman’s University, Texas A&M Commerce, Texas Tech and the University of North Texas.