MLK Community Celebration postponed to Feb. 8
The Martin Luther King Jr. Steering Committee has made the decision to reschedule the MLK Community Celebration to Feb. 8 with the Service Fair starting at 2:30 p.m. and the Community Celebration starting at 3 - 4:30 p.m. at the Convocation Center.
This event holds great significance for our community, and this decision was not made lightly. However, the safety and well-being of our participants, volunteers and attendees remains our top priority.
At this time, the Day of Service, scheduled at 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. this Friday, will continue as planned at the following locations:
- Area Churches Together Serving (ACTS) of Aiken
- Aiken Animal Shelter
- Clean Up Aiken
Please note that decision has no bearing on the status of operations of the university. Our university leaders will be meeting over the next couple of days to determine the status of university operations for Monday. As always, any updates to the university's schedule will be noted on the website, social media and via email.
2026 MLK Community Celebration
USCA and Aiken Technical College present
The MLK Community Celebration
February 8, 2026
USCA Convocation Center
2:30 p.m. - Community Resource Fair
3:00 p.m. - Celebration Begins
Speaker: Cecil J. Williams, Photographer, Author, Inventor, and Activist
Theme: “Human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability; it comes through the tireless efforts of men willing to be coworkers with God, and without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation.” – Letter from Birmingham Jail, 1963
Each year the University of South Carolina Aiken and Aiken Technical College team up to commemorate the life and legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The tenets of Dr. King’s work continue to be a part of the foundation of the values and mission of both institutions. Dr. King was a leader in his community, our nation and world as he championed the Civil Rights movement and became the face of the movement, even after his untimely murder in 1968. Fighting for the rights of every citizen in our nation found us achieving the passing of the greatest piece of civil rights legislation since Reconstruction, the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This piece of federal legislation gave all American citizens protections from being discriminated against based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin. As a collective, we recognize how monumental his contributions have been to society, locally and nationally.
USCA and Aiken Tech have been facilitating programs and events, individually, to commemorate Dr. King’s contributions for decades. However, the two came together in 2014 to start a new tradition that created a celebration for the entire Aiken County community.