MSU students to select hero for multicultural hall of fame

EAST LANSING, Mich. – Seven teams are set, seven heroes are selected, and the competition is fast approaching for Michigan State University students to explain why their hero should be inducted into the Black History Month Multicultural Heroes Hall of Fame.

The 6^th annual Black History Month Multicultural Heroes Case Competition is from 6-8 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 21, in the N100 Business College Complex. MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon will present remarks at 6 p.m.

Teams will be presenting their cases for John F. Kennedy, 35^th president of the United States; Mary McLeod Bethune, educator; Marcus Garvey, a black nationalist; Tenzin Gyatso, the 14^th Dalai Lama; Coretta Scott King, civil rights activist; Muhammad Yunus, 2006 Nobel Peace Prize recipient; and Frederick Douglass, abolitionist.

Students representing The Eli Broad College of Business, the colleges of Engineering, Arts and Letters, Social Science, Communication Arts and Sciences, James Madison College and the Honors College will be competing for a $1,500 award.

“We are transforming lives and advancing knowledge while stressing the value of multiculturalism and diversity. It is our hope that as we honor past heroes on our educational journey, our path will be traveled by many,” said Darrell E. King, chairperson of the competition.

Teams of three MSU undergraduates have 10 minutes to make their cases, which will include a biography of each candidate. In addition, the presentations will show how the person has carried and passed the torch of justice and how the person contributed to the struggle for human rights. Teams also will explain the relationship between their hero and Martin Luther King Jr., and why he or she should be inducted into the hall of fame.

A reception outside N100 BCC will follow the competition. The Eli Broad College of Business and the Multicultural Business Programs are sponsoring the competition.

Within the past five years, the Black History Month Multicultural Heroes Case Competition has presented more than $11,000 in awards.  

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Michigan State University has been advancing knowledge and transforming lives through innovative teaching, research and outreach for more than 150 years.