01 Feb 2016 Harding vice president receives service award

Dr. James Carr, senior vice president at Harding University, was recently presented with the 2016 Community Service Award from the Arkansas Martin Luther King Jr. Commission.

“Each year, the Arkansas Martin Luther King Jr. Commission recognizes outstanding contributions in community service by individuals or organizations across the state and selects a different region of the state as a focus,” said DeShun Scarbrough, executive director of the commission. “The recipient must make strides in serving their own respective communities in the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who once said, ‘Everyone can be great because everyone can serve.’”

The commission began in 1993 and seeks to promote the legacy and philosophy of Dr. King. On Jan. 18, the organization held its annual Mega Kingfest event, and throughout the day, five programs were held to celebrate and remember the life and legacy of Dr. King.

Carr was presented with the 2016 community service award at the celebratory event, where Arun Manilal Gandhi, the fifth grandson of the late Mohandas K. “Mahatma” Gandhi, was the keynote speaker.

“Dr. Jim Carr was awarded the 2016 community service award due to his diligent efforts of promoting multiculturalism and Kingian philosophy within his position at Harding University and also throughout the city of Searcy,” Scarbrough said. “We feel as though he carries the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by promoting diversity through various programming initiatives.”