The planning process is underway for Penn’s annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemorative Symposium on Social Change, which celebrates the life and legacy of the revered preacher and civil rights activist.

The entire University community is invited to submit a program idea for the commemoration, which begins with “Day of Service” activities on Monday, Jan. 20, 2014 and runs through Friday, Jan. 31.

Organizers of the symposium are seeking events that reflect King’s life, as well as his work to end racism and poverty, and to embrace diversity.

“His life was dedicated to service,” says Robert Carter, co-chair of the symposium and associate director of the African-American Resource Center.

On Tuesday, Jan. 21, the symposium’s signature program will feature Penn Integrates Knowledge Professor Dorothy Roberts discussing race and the law. Roberts has a joint appointment in the Department of Sociology in the School of Arts & Sciences and Penn Law School.

Program submissions can include events such as lectures on issues of social change and social justice, poetry readings, musical performances, and community involvement projects. In past years, volunteers have worked on painting and sprucing up West Philadelphia elementary and high schools.

“People should think about things that would bring their heart and mind to the subject area,” Carter says.

To view some of the programs already scheduled, or submit an idea, visit the MLK Symposium website.

The deadline for program submissions is Tuesday, Dec. 3. All of the symposium events will be listed on the MLK 2014 website, in the official MLK Symposium guide, and in the Almanac’s January calendar.

The events are free and open to the public.