DePaul University will commemorate the life of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. with a public reception and remarks by noted author and lecturer, the Rev. Michael Eric Dyson.

The reception will be held at 1 p.m. Jan. 18 in the Egan Urban Center, located on the 9^th floor of the DePaul Computer Science and Telecommunications Center, 243 S. Wabash Ave.

Dyson is a professor and ordained Baptist minister. He is currently a visiting distinguished professor of African American Studies at Columbia University. He earned a doctorate in religion from Princeton University. Hailed both for his intellectual and rhetorical gifts, Dyson has been called "one of the youngest stars in the firmament of black intellectuals." He has written four books that have gained critical acclaim from scholars and journalists. His latest work, "Race Rules: Navigating the Color Line," has been praised as "an important document for the end of the century."

This program is sponsored by the DePaul University Cultural Center. The reception is free and open to the public, but reservations must be made by Jan. 11. To make reservations, please contact Harvette Grey, director of DePaul’s Cultural Center, at 773/325-7759.

Editor’s Note: A breakfast program for DePaul students, faculty and staff will be held at 8 a.m. Jan. 18 at the Cortelyou Commons Building, 2324 N. Fremont St. The Rev. Michael Eric Dyson will be the keynote speaker. This event is open to the media, but not the general public. Please call Roxanne Jahi for reservations at 312/362-8623.