In the spirit of civil rights campaigns, students and faculty have the opportunity to participate in a march across campus.

The annual march to commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King is scheduled to start at 3:30 p.m. Thursday in the lobby of Stevenson Towers North, wind its way through campus and end in the MLK Commons at the Holmes Student Center.

Willard Draper, adviser for the NIU chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and director of resident life for Student Housing and Dining Services, organized the march.

“We want students to remember how it is to march,” Draper said. “It is important for students to get a sense of what it’s like to be involved in something that changed the nation.”

The Center for Black Studies plans to cancel its classes scheduled during the march so students enrolled in those classes can participate.

LaVerne Gyant, director of the Center for Black Studies, is lending her support by canceling her own classes.

“The teachers here at the Center for Black Studies usually go to the march and the celebration,” Gyant said. “We always cancel classes during the march to encourage our students to go as well.”

Students and faculty of all nationalities are encouraged to attend the march.

“Numbers for the march usually stay the same every year, between 100 and 200 people,” Gyant said. “I personally think those are very small numbers for a march. I want to see many more people this year.”

Despite predicted dismal weather conditions, Draper said the march will not be canceled. Refusing to cancel will serve as a testament to the will and drive of Dr. King, he said.

“Even though classes are going to be postponed, this isn’t a holiday for students to just lay around,” Draper said. “Dr. King was an important man and his contributions need to be respected.”

For more information on the MLK walk, contact Draper at 753-9605.