About
Registration is now closed. Questions? Email mlkdos@gwu.edu.
As part of the GW celebration of the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. students, faculty, and staff are invited to participate in a day of service, leadership development and interfaith dialogue. Last year, over 600 participants gathered for the opening program with keynote speakers and headed to service sites both on and off campus and participated in leadership workshops.
This year, due to COVID-19, MLK Day of Service and Leadership 2021 will take place virtually. For our 25th anniversary, we are offering unique Virtual Service and Workshop options for you to choose from as well as hosting a Winter Care Package Drive for Connected Schools.
We are honored to have our MLK Day of Service and Leadership included in the Presidential Inaugural Committee's National Day of Service! On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, January 18, the Presidential Inaugural Committee will bring together volunteers from across the country in the President-Elect’s vision of empathetic leadership to participate in direct services in local communities most affected by the crises of the pandemic. Let the President-Elect Biden and Vice President-Elect Harris know that you’re committed to serving your community by volunteering on January 18, 2021!
Virtual Service and Workshops will be on a variety of topics that will help you better engage your GW, DC, and hometown communities in service. Students, faculty, and staff can participate. If space permits, we will open registration to alumni and external community members.
Schedule At-A-Glance
- 1:00pm ET - 2:00pm ET Virtual Opening Program & Keynote Speaker
- 2:00pm ET - 3:30pm ET Virtual Service Project OR Workshop *(project start/end times may differ, please check each individual project)*
To register, please review all virtual service and/or workshop opportunities below and click “Register." Some opportunities have a limit on the number of registrations and may be closed if they have reached capacity. If that happens, please feel free to register for another opportunity. Please read all details carefully when registering as some may have different start times.
Please only register for the opening and one opportunity to allow more people to participate in the day.
Unable to join us on MLK Day but still want to support the community? In addition to virtual service and workshops we are proud to host a Winter Care Package Drive for Connected Schools. In 2019, DC Public Schools launched the Connected School Initiative to serve students and families furthest from opportunity. Connected Schools partner with the community to make schools spaces that support not only a student’s academic development, but also a family’s overall wellbeing. Connected Schools provide an integrated approach to academics, health and social services, youth development, and community engagement in order to ensure students thrive in school and in life.
Through the MLK Day of Service and Leadership Winter Care Package Drive, the GW community can support families in these school communities by visiting the Winter Care Package Wishlist and donating warm winter clothing and hygiene products. Please purchase items directly from the wish list. We are unable to accept standalone items. Items purchased from the wish list will be mailed directly to us.
Shifts (12)
Shift | Start Time | End Time | Address | Description | Registrants Needed | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Opening & Keynote Address | 1:00pm (ET) | 1:45pm (ET) | 837 22nd St NW Washington, DC 20052 | Join us for our opening program with university leadership and our keynote speaker! | 313/400 | Over |
Service & Workshop: Hunger Simulation & Letter Writing with Capital Area Foodbank | 2:00pm (ET) | 3:30pm (ET) | 837 22nd St NW Washington, DC 20052 | What’s it like to walk in the shoes of someone experiencing hunger? Our Face Hunger™ workshop offers a glimpse into the daily realities and impossible choices of someone confronting food insecurity. Presented by Capital Area Food Bank, during this virtual simulation you’ll assume a new identity and work to overcome obstacles to providing... | 64/65 | Over |
Service: Letter Writing with Operation Gratitude, led by GW Silver Wings | 2:00pm (ET) | 3:30pm (ET) | 837 22nd St NW Washington, DC 20052 | Join Silver Wings , a national, coed, professional organization dedicated to creating proactive, knowledgeable, and effective civic leaders through community service and education, in writing letters to first responders and/or military affiliated groups. Affiliated with Arnold Air Society, Air Force ROTC, and the Air Force Association, Silver Wings engages members... | 13/40 | Over |
Service: Phone Banking with Girls on the Run-DC | 2:00pm (ET) | 3:30pm (ET) | 837 22nd St NW Washington, DC 20052 | Girls on the Run-DC inspires girls in 3rd-8th grade to be healthy, joyful, and confident using an experience-based curriculum that creatively integrates running. Join us in empowering girls across DC and PGC by helping us collect stories from and say thank you to our supporters! Volunteers for GOTR-DC will make... | 24/40 | Over |
Service: Transcribe Historical Documents with Smithsonian Transcription Center | 2:00pm (ET) | 4:00pm (ET) | 837 22nd St NW Washington, DC 20052 | The Smithsonian Transcription Center is a freely accessible website that connects volunteers across the world with digitized Smithsonian collections. Users can transcribe, review, or explore historical letters, diaries, scientific specimen sheets, newspapers, and more through Transcription Center projects. Why is this so important? Because transcription allows researchers everywhere to more easily discover,... | 54/63 | Over |
Workshop: A Wider Circle, Impact of Volunteering and an Overview of A Wider Circle | 2:00pm (ET) | 3:30pm (ET) | 837 22nd Street Northwest Washington, District of Columbia 20052 | Join A Wider Circle for a presentation about the impact of volunteering and to learn more about their organizational mission. "The mission of A Wider Circle is to end poverty. Our holistic approach integrates on-the-ground services for the creation of stable homes, workforce development, and neighborhood revitalization. We also seek... | 5/40 | Over |
Workshop: Dive-In Directly with your Community - Direct Service Opportunities with the Nashman Center | 2:00pm (ET) | 3:30pm (ET) | 837 22nd St NW Washington, DC 20052 | As part of MLK Day of Service and King week, this workshop will cover some of the ways students can get involved with direct service with the Nashman Center and how directly diving into your community is the first step in having a foundational knowledge and experience to further create social change after the... | 28/40 | Over |
Workshop: Education and Equity with GW Jumpstart | 2:00pm (ET) | 3:30pm (ET) | 837 22nd St NW Washington, DC 20052 | Learn about Martin Luther King Jr.’s lasting legacy and apply his work to the education system. In this workshop, we will discuss the education system as it exists today and use Dr. King’s ideologies to think about how we can make education more equitable. This workshop will be led by... | 54/55 | Over |
Workshop: Navigating Dialogues | 3:00pm (ET) | 4:30pm (ET) | 837 22nd St NW Washington, DC 20052 | Note: Start time is later than other projects and will begin at 3pm EST. This workshop will explore the importance and necessity of navigating conversations with peers that promote effective and productive dialogue. | 15/40 | Over |
Workshop: Peace Circle with Little Friends for Peace | 2:00pm (ET) | 4:00pm (ET) | 837 22nd St NW Washington, DC 20052 | From playground put-downs and family fights to street crime and war, violence builds from the ground up. Children and youth are especially vulnerable to fear, loneliness, anger and frustration when they witness or experience violence. Little Friends For Peace (LFFP) meets people and communities where they are, empowering them to... | 28/40 | Over |
Workshop: Policy Advocacy as a Pathway to Change | 2:00pm (ET) | 3:30pm (ET) | 837 22nd St NW Washington, DC 20052 | In 2020, many asked whether the path to change lay in voting and policy or protest. This session will outline a pathway to effective policy advocacy for advancing systemic and institutional change. | 40/40 | Over |
Workshop: Storytelling about Belief Development with GW Art Therapy | 2:00pm (ET) | 3:30pm (ET) | 837 22nd St NW Washington, DC 20052 | In his sermon “Loving Your Enemies,” King preached, “we must not seek to defeat or humiliate the enemy but to win his friendship and understanding…Every word and deed must contribute to an understanding with the enemy and release those vast reservoirs of goodwill that have been blocked by impenetrable walls... | 34/40 | Over |