Martin Luther King Jr. Day event to feature Ole students in leadership
To celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day, St. Olaf College will host an event on Thursday, January 16, featuring speeches by Ole student leaders.
St. Olaf George Floyd Fellows Gislaine Bassekle ’26 and Duane Bogne ’25, as well as Student Government Association (SGA) President Zaria Irving ’25, will speak about leadership and their efforts to advance the work that the renowned civil rights leader began some six decades ago. The event, which will be held from 4:30-6 p.m. in the Buntrock Commons Sun Ballroom, will be open to the public. It will be streamed live and archived online.
The Martin Luther King Jr. Day event is organized by the Taylor Center for Equity and Inclusion, which aims to foster an inclusive environment across the intersections of race and identity that students bring to St. Olaf. The Taylor Center will also host a special brunch for students that will be held on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The college will honor and recognize Martin Luther King Jr. Day by not holding classes on Monday, January 20, and making the day a holiday for staff, faculty, and students.
Taylor Center Director Martin Olague ’04 notes that while Martin Luther King Jr. Day events often reflect on the work past leaders have done, it’s important to highlight the impressive work that future leaders are starting to advance.
“I think there is a lot of good that students are doing today,” he says. “St. Olaf attracts many people who not only will do great things after graduation, but are driven to make life better while they are students, balancing their workload and passion. I am eager to highlight that in these events.”
About the speakers
Irving is serving as the SGA president for the 2024-25 academic year. She has been involved in a wide range of campus organizations and activities, including serving in leadership roles with the Cultural Union for Black Expression (CUBE), Oles Against Inequality, the Programming Board, and the St. Olaf Football team, where she is the head manager. She was part of a team of students that created and pitched a business plan for a permanent barbershop shop on campus as part of the annual Ole Cup student entrepreneurial competition — work that resulted in the opening of The Shop 1500 this fall. In her Opening Convocation address at the beginning of the academic year, she encouraged new St. Olaf students to lean into the opportunities the college has to offer, from joining clubs to studying abroad to exploring Northfield.
“Being a Black woman is simultaneously the most magical and challenging thing one can be,” Irving says. “Fighting the challenge and embracing the magic means reflecting on my hardships, being active in my community, but also forcing myself into spaces that are not catered to me. That is how I survive.”
Bassekle and Bogne were named George Floyd Fellows for the 2024-25 academic year. The St. Olaf George Floyd Fellowship for Social Change was created to support the advancement and development of the Black/African-American community in the United States whose populations experience the social, political, and economic barriers and factors that contextualize the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police on May 25, 2020. Each fellow develops a project that they work on throughout the year.
Bassekle, who is majoring in entrepreneurship and race and ethnic studies, has chosen to focus her fellowship on forging meaningful connections with Black artists within the music industry. Her project, titled “Amplify Black Artist Careers,” aims to lift up marginalized voices, embrace diverse perspectives, and deepen the understanding of the music industry landscape.
“This project stands as a beacon of possibility, intertwining artistic expression with the urgent call for social progress,” she says. “By forging deep connections with Black artists and musicians within the music industry, we are not only enriching our own artistic journeys but also advancing the collective experiences of marginalized communities.”
Bogne, a computer science major, is using his fellowship to build a foundation for students in marginalized public schools with the goal of improving attendance, participation, and good behavior in these schools. “My goal is to develop a desire to be successful in school for these young kids,” Bogne says. In addition to his work as a George Floyd Fellow, Bogne is an Eddie Phillips Scholar and delivered the 2024 Martin Luther King Jr. Day keynote address.