Seton Hill University’s Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Task Force will hold its annual educational program in commemoration of Dr. King’s birthday, featuring Dr. Don Sawyer III, Vice President for Equity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Conn. Dr. Sawyer’s remarks are titled “Projects to Ph.D.: Living King’s Dream as a Community-Engaged Sociologist.” The event will take place on Wednesday, February 5 from 11:30 a.m. to 12:20 p.m. in Cecilian Hall.

Dr. Don C. Sawyer III, is the Vice President for Equity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut. He is also a tenured associate professor in the department of sociology, criminal justice, and anthropology as well as assistant clinical professor in the Frank H. Netter, MD, School of Medicine. He teaches courses on Race, Education, Popular Culture, Social Research Methods, and Visual Sociology, including the university’s first course dedicated to the sociological study of hip-hop culture.

During the Martin Luther King Jr. Education Day, Dr. Sawyer will share his personal reflections, enabling Seton Hill students to understand how they can embody the legacy of Dr. King in their own lives.

Dr. Sawyer earned his Ph.D. and M.A. in Sociology and M.S. in Cultural Foundations of Education from Syracuse University and a B.A. in Psychology from Hartwick College.

His scholarly focus is on race, social justice, urban education, hip-hop culture, visual sociology, prisoner reentry, and youth critical media literacy. His current book project is an analysis of the social and academic experiences of African-American male students in a dismantled urban middle school.

Dr. Sawyer recently founded the #HipHopHeals Project, a community-based recording studio for Haitian and Dominican youth living in the Dominican Republic. In addition, he created the #HipHopProject, a youth, hip-hop, and social justice program at Quinnipiac University in the College of Arts and Sciences.