MVSU / SCLC Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Conflict Resolution
In response to a dire need for the international experience in undergraduate education, Mississippi Valley State University is developing a program in international studies which focuses on conflict management through nonviolent intervention and language immersion in uncommonly taught languages, including Arabic, Chinese and Russian. Students will have an option of a certificate or minor in conflict management.
MVSU and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, headquartered in Atlanta, have partnered to establish the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Conflict Resolution Center through Nonviolent Intervention in Ivrea, Italy.
"This is just the beginning," said MVSU President Lester C. Newman. "As the nation continues to face many critical global and domestic issues, we are challenged to prepare young people for a world that does not always exhibit brotherly love. Today's young people have to know what it truly means to 'love thy neighbor'".
"Our role is to offer a certificate program and ultimately a degree in conflict management utilizing King's philosophy as a foundation for our coursework," Newman said.
MVSU students will reap more than academic knowledge. "First of all, it certainly grounds them in the understanding and the importance of the contribution that King has made to society. The other is they will get an opportunity to travel abroad to visit some of the sites where there will be centers," said Newman.
"The conflict resolution centers were created in the spirit and teachings of Dr. King," said SCLC President and CEO Charles Steele Jr.
"They focus on his philosophy of non-violence. The initiative was put into place to assist in decreasing violence, not only in our communities, but communities around the world," Steele said.
The first center, established by SCLC in Dimona, Israel with the African Hebrew Israelite Community, was followed by the second center in Dayton, Ohio. Other centers are scheduled to open throughout the world.
"Given the international conflict and the lack of cultural understanding we have about people in general -- not only in the country but worldwide -- it is important to have people trained who can relate to each other and hopefully allow us to deal with those conflicts that keep us apart and to deal with each other as human beings," Newman said.
Educational consultant Denis Kelleher Muhilly of South Carolina is coordinating the logistics between MVSU and the Il Cagliero d'Ivera Scuola Salensiana to establish the Interuniversity Center Augusta Taurinorum. The center is expected to open in 2007. For more information, visit the Web site at www.uni-cat.org.