Horizon League schools to host annual Martin Luther King Celebration this weekend
Jan. 15, 2009
Complete Release in PDF Format 
INDIANAPOLIS --- In a continuation of a tradition, the Horizon League and its member institutions will honor the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with a student-centered arts contest, which will culminate with celebrations at men's and women's basketball games this Friday and Saturday on the weekend of Martin Luther King Day.
Each League school hosting a game this weekend has partnered with a local elementary or middle school to organize a contest for fifth- or sixth-graders who have submitted a piece of art, an essay, or a musical performance focusing on the life of Dr. King.
The contest winners have received three free tickets to the game and will be recognized on the court during pre-game or halftime festivities and receive a commemorative gift from the Horizon League. In addition, the winning projects will be displayed at the arenas.
Now in its sixth season, the Horizon League's Martin Luther King Day tradition began on MLK Day in 2004 with a men's basketball game between Cleveland State University and the University of Detroit Mercy, both of whom had African-American head coaches. In each of the last four years, the event has expanded to include games at all schools hosting League competition that weekend.
Below is a list of games that will include a Martin Luther King Celebration this weekend:
Friday, Jan. 16
Wright State at Detroit (M) (ESPNU) - Gesu Catholic Elementary
Saturday, Jan. 17
Youngstown State at Green Bay (M) / Cleveland State at Youngstown State (W) - Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary
Cleveland State at Milwaukee (M) / Detroit at Milwaukee (W) - Tippecanoe School for the Arts & Humanities
Butler at UIC (M) (ESPN2) - Alain Locke Charter School & St. Ann Elementary
Valparaiso at Loyola (M) - Northside Catholic Academy
Wright State at Green Bay (W) - Danz Elementary
UIC at Butler (W) - North Wayne Elementary
Loyola at Valparaiso (W) - Parkview Elementary
Comprised of 10 public and private institutions of higher learning, the Horizon League is an NCAA Division I athletics conference that sponsors 19 intercollegiate championships and is headquartered in Indianapolis. The League and its member institutions aspire to teach young people, through athletic competition, the value of learning, service to others and personal responsibility.
