News Releases

January 5, 2012
For Immediate Release
For additional information: 
Barbara Kerr, APR
Executive Director of Communications and Marketing
Telephone: 360-992-2921
Email: bkerr@clark.edu

 

After the Dream: A Call to Service

Through learning and service, Clark College
will honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on Jan. 18 and 19

Kathleen SaadatVANCOUVER, Wash. – What are you doing for others?  That question, posed by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., is at the heart of celebrations in his honor across the country.  It will also be the focus of activities at Clark College on Jan. 18 and 19.

On Jan. 18, Clark College will welcome social activist Kathleen D. Saadat, interim Diversity Development/Affirmative Action Manager for the Human Resources Bureau of the City of Portland.  A consultant and trainer in the areas of human diversity and organizational development and a motivational speaker, Saadat served as Oregon’s Director of Affirmative Action from 1987-1990.

Saadat will speak at 11 a.m. in Clark’s Gaiser Student Center.  The event is free and open to the public.  Clark College is located at 1933 Fort Vancouver Way, Vancouver. Driving directions and parking maps are available at www.clark.edu/maps.

On Jan. 19, the focus will turn to service. Community members are invited to join Clark volunteers serving at the Clark County Habitat for Humanity ReStore, 5000 E. Fourth Plain Blvd., Vancouver. 

Volunteers are invited to meet outside the Penguin Student Lounge in the Penguin Union Building at 1:30 p.m. Vans will transport volunteers to and from Habitat ReStore, where they will help with sorting and organizing merchandise, creating new displays, pricing and stocking donations, and other tasks.  Volunteers will return to the college by van at 5:00 p.m. To learn more, contact Clark’s Volunteer & Service Learning Program by calling 360-992-2447 or by email at service_learning@clark.edu.

Information about the Portland-Vancouver Habitat for Humanity ReStore is available at http://www.pdxrestore.org/.  Information about the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service is available at http://mlkday.gov/

Individuals who need accommodation due to a disability in order to fully participate in this event should contact Clark College’s Disability Support Services Office at (360) 992-2314 or (360) 992-2835 (TTY), or send an email message to tjacobs@clark.edu within one week of the event.

Kathleen SaadatAbout Kathleen D. Saadat

Kathleen D. Saadat is currently the interim Diversity Development/Affirmative Action Manager for the Human Resources Bureau of the City of Portland.  She previously served as Director of Diversity at the Cascade AIDS project.  From 1987-1990, she served as Oregon’s Director of Affirmative Action.

Throughout her career, Saadat, who earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology at Reed College, has worked as a consultant and trainer in the areas of human diversity and organizational development and as a motivational speaker.

Kathleen Saadat is a member of Class VI of the Oregon American Leadership Forum, a 1992 Fellow with the Advocacy Institute in Washington DC, the recipient of a fellowship to the Hedgebrook Women's Writers Retreat, and a member of the 29th Street Writers.  

The June 1993 issue of Oregon Business Magazine listed Kathleen Saadat as one of “100 Who Lead” in Oregon. Saadat is also recipient of a Woman of Achievement Award from Oregon State University; The Portland Lesbian Community Project's Spirit of Portlandia Awards for Leadership (1987 & 1992); the Bayard Rustin Civil Rights Award, presented by the Northwest Coalition Against Malicious Harassment; the Harvey Milk Award presented by After Eight, Corvallis, Oregon; a Civil Liberties Award from the Oregon chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union; the Phoenix Rising Jack Abele award and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the World Arts Foundation in recognition of her contributions to the efforts to "Keep Living the Dream" of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

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