The Mayors of Boone and Blowing Rock, ASU's Chancellor, as well as the Watauga County Commissioners and the Blowing Rock Chamber of Commerce have proclaimed Friday, January 15, to Sunday, January 24 to be "I Have A Dream Week", a celebration of Martin Luther King's vision and lifetime of service to humanity.
-Jan. 17 kicks off the events with: Commemorating our Unitarian Universalists' Activities during the Civil Rights Movement on Sunday at the Boone Unitarian Universalists from 10:30 AM - Noon. 381 E. King Street, Boone. Call 264-4456.
-Jan. 18 is the MLK CHALLENGE. A Day ON, not a day off! It's the 10th annual day of challenging the community with service projects. It will be on Monday from 8.30 AM - 6.30 PM at Legends. It's sponsored by ACT, University Highlands and the N.C. Carolina Campus Compact. Register with ASU ACT office, call 262-2193.
-Jan. 18 Is also the 13th annual Musical Unity Service. "Watauga's children, building Dr. King's dream with Greg Mortenson...one penny and one brick at a time." Presenters will include: Dr. Connie Ulmer, Mary Gray,Sondra Edwards and music with Pastor Morris Hatton at 7 PM at Mabel Methodist Church on Old Hwy 421. Desserts will follow. Call 297-3568.
-The week of Jan 18-23 is Let's Hold Hands. There will be Paper doll making to celebrate Greg Mortenson and the Central Asia Institute's work of building schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan at the Watauga County Library. Call 264-8784.
-Jan. 21 is the Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemoration at ASU. Keynote speaker will be Nikki Giovanni, a world-renowned poet, writer, commentator, activist and educator and Distinguished Professor of English at Virginia Tech. She will speak at 7 p.m at Farthing Auditorium. Call 262-6252.
-Jan. 23 will be Young World Radio Show - the I Have A Dream Special. A one-hour children's radio tribute Saturday to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. at 12 Noon on WATA-AM 1450 and WXIT-AM 1200. Call 264-6016.
-Jan. 23 will also be the Dances of Universal Peace dedicated to the Dream on Saturday at 7:30 PM at St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Boone. A donation of $5 is requested. Call Akal Dev Sharonne at 264-1384.
-Jan. 24 will be A Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on Sunday at 11 AM at the Mennonite Brethren Church located off of Church Street in Boone. Call 263-0502.
-Jan. 24 will also feature "Dances with Rumi" with poetry, dance, flute, sitar and percussion. Rumi is a 13th century Persian mystic, who is the most widely read poet in America today. That will begin at 4:00 PM at St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Boone. A donation of $5-$10 is requested to compensate performers. Call Akal Dev Sharonne at 264-1384.
This program is funded by generous donations from individuals and organizations who believe in the dream. For more information on the I Have A Dream Task Force, call 264-5620.
Kiplinger.com has ranked Appalachian State number 22 in a list of 100 public colleges across the nation with the best value. The Washington, D.C. based publisher ranked the schools based on academic quality, cost, and financial aid. App State was one of six North Carolina schools to be listed. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was ranked number one, North Carolina State University was ranked in tenth place, The University of North Carolina at Wilmington was ranked 27th, The University of North Carolina at Asheville was ranked 44th, and North Carolina School of the Arts was ranked 61st. Out of all the North Carolina schools in the Kiplinger's top 100, ASU has the lowest total tuition and the third stingiest admission rate behind Chapel Hill and the NC School of the Arts. Residents can see all of Kiplinger's 100 Best Values for Public Colleges at www.kiplinger.com/reports/best-college-values/