Palm Beach State College has hosted its annual celebration honoring the noted civil rights leader since 2000. The event is among the College’s diversity initiatives, and it attracts hundreds of students, faculty, staff and members of the community each year.

In 2005, the College unveiled a 5-foot granite monument and named the courtyard —the site of the breakfast — in honor of King. As part of the breakfast celebration, the College presents its annual Martin Luther King Jr. Leadership Awards to outstanding individuals who have made innovative contributions toward improving the lives of others in Palm Beach County.

For the first time in 2007, the College broadcast the event live on the Internet to allow students and employees who cannot attend the event in Lake Worth to still participate in the celebration.

Through the years, the celebration has included stellar speakers, including, Poet Nikki Giovanni; Stuart attorney Willie Gary; Juan Williams, political analyst for Fox News Channel and National Public Radio senior correspondent; Xernona Clayton, founder of the Trumpet Awards and former Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice Harry Lee Anstead.