Dear Members of our Campus Community, 

Later today, SUNY Oswego will join college campuses, churches and other institutions and organizations across the nation paying homage to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  At 7:05 p.m. (EST), SUNY Oswego will ring its campus bells 39 times, marking the 50th anniversary of Dr. King's assassination and memorializing the number of years he lived.

In the words of the King family, “This is a simple, yet meaningful way for our nation to acknowledge the loss but more importantly the great contributions Dr. King gave to the world stage.”  

At SUNY Oswego, we see Dr. King's legacy written into the fabric of our college -- in our commitment to teaching for social justice, our pride in human diversity, our emphasis on community and civic engagement, and in our unyielding resolve to work toward developing an inclusive and vibrant community of scholars who act as transformational agents of change. 

When the bells ring out on our campus this evening at 7:05 p.m., I encourage you to pause and reflect on Dr. King's exceptional moral courage and his legacy, which are increasingly relevant to us today.

Deborah F. Stanley
President