Photo: Charles Foster, the first African American to graduate from The Citadel, marching with other cadets

Black History Month events

Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebrations at The Citadel

Monday, Jan. 20
7:30 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Various locations
Free, most events are open to the public

While preparing to celebrate Black History Month, in February, The Citadel will also go all out to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday, Jan. 20.

The highlight of The Citadel’s celebrations will be an address from Bernard Powers, Ph.D., the Interim chief executive officer and president for the International African American Museum.

In addition to multiple events on campus, Citadel cadets will also march in Charleston’s MLK Day Parade.

Other Citadel events to celebrate MLK Day include: a Citadel community breakfast, service projects at four different Lowcountry locations, and a CitListen session.

The Citadel is a sponsor for the City of Charleston’s MLK Day parade.

The Challenges of Interpreting Slavery in the 21st Century: A Roundtable Discussion and Display of Slave Artifacts

Friday, Jan 31
6 – 8 p.m.
The North Gallery of the Daniel Library, on The Citadel’s campus
Free, open to the public

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The Citadel’s first official event to celebrate Black History Month will feature a collection of more than 100 artifacts from the transatlantic slave trade. The items belong to local Charleston resident, George Bryant.

The event will include a roundtable discussion about the challenges of interpreting slavery in the modern age, and it will be lead by local scholars and experts.

Participants in the roundtable discussion include: 

• Shannon Eaves, Ph.D., assistant professor of History and board member for the Center for the Study of Slavery at the College of Charleston
• Muhammad Fraser-Rahim, Ph.D., assistant professor of Intelligence and Security Studies at The Citadel
• Shawn Halifax, cultural history interpretation coordinator for the Charleston County Parks & Recreation Commission.

Felice Knight, Ph.D., assistant professor of History at The Citadel, will serve as moderator.

African America Society Bazaar

Saturday, Feb. 1
10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Buyer Auditorium in Mark Clark Hall, on The Citadel’s campus
Free, open to the public

The African American Society Bazaar will feature music, exhibits, venders, and food, and attracts visitors to campus from all across the Lowcountry.

The event will be on Saturday, Feb. 1 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. It will be held in Buyer Auditorium, which is on the second floor of Mark Clark Hall.

Music will be performed by McCants and the Cats. Local Charleston resident, George Bryant, will display select items from his collection of more than 100 authentic artifacts from the transatlantic slave trade. A Taste of Soul Food will include samples of southern cooking provided by My Three Sons Restaurant. Several local venders will be present to sell their goods. The Center for Heirs Property Preservation will be present to answer questions about heir’s property.  The center’s mission is serving, supporting and empowering heirs’ property owners and their communities.

For reservations, and more information contact them at (843) 745-7055. 

Poetry Workshop conducted by Marcus Amaker

Tuesday, Feb. 4
6:30 – 7:30 p.m.
Daniel Library, on The Citadel’s campus
Free, open to the media

Marcus Amaker, Charleston, South Carolina’s Poet Laureate, will conduct a poetry workshop for interested Citadel students and invited high school students.

Later in the month, students who participated in the workshop will be invited to read their poems at a poetry slam. That event will be on Feb. 18.

Amaker wrote his first poem at the age of 10. Since then, he has written seven books and had his poetry featured in the Huffington Post, Charleston Magazine, and PBS Newshour. He is an award winning graphic artist/web designer and musician who has appeared with Grammy-nominated drummer/producer Quentin E. Baxter at poetry/jazz events and at TEDXCharleston.

Parade honoring Charles Foster, Class of 1970

Friday, Feb. 14
3:45 p.m.
Summerall Field, on The Citadel’s campus
Free, open to the public

On Friday, Feb. 14, The Citadel will pay tribute to it’s first-ever African American graduate, Charles Foster.

This year is also the 50th anniversary of Foster’s graduation from The Citadel.

Legislators and community leaders are expected to attend the parade along with Foster’s brother, William.

For more information on Charles Foster’s story, click here.

An Evening of Inspiration and Unity: Citadel Gospel Choir Concert

Sunday, Feb. 16
4 – 5:30 p.m.
Summerall Chapel, on The Citadel’s campus
Free, open to the public

Back by popular demand, the highly acclaimed Citadel Gospel Choir — and their special guests, The Gainesville Brass Quintet, The Ebenezer AME Praise Band, and more — return for an afternoon of uplifting music and celebration.

Cadets and students volunteer to be part of the choirs, which are run by faculty, staff and volunteers. They choirs use their voices to share songs of joy and praise intended to touch hearts and lift spirits.

The highly acclaimed Citadel Gospel Choir returns after a successful tour of the Southeast region of the United States; including stops in Tennessee, Alabama, and Georgia, where they performed for churches, community members, and veterans at the Memphis VA Medical Center.

Black History Poetry Slam

Tuesday, Feb. 18
6:30 – 8 p.m.
Daniel Library, on The Citadel’s campus
Free, open to the public

After getting some professional guidance from Poet Laureate Marcus Amaker, students will have a chance to actually read their poems to an audience.

The Citadel will host a poetry slam featuring students who participated in the workshop hosted by Amaker.

The event is co-sponsored by The Citadel English Department, Daniel Library, and the Office of Multicultural and International Student Services.

America’s other Muslims: lecture and book signing

Tuesday, Feb. 25
6:30 – 8 p.m.
Museum Reading Room, Daniel Library
Free, open to the public

Citadel professor and expert on violent extremism, Muhammad Fraser-Rahim, Ph.D., will discuss his new book — America’s Other Muslims: Imam W.D. Mohammed, Islamic Reform, and the Making of American Islam.

Fraser-Rahim will hold a lecture about his book, which he says is about average American Muslims. He will focus on one of the oldest and most important Muslim communities in America, as well as Imam W.D. Mohammed and his contributions to the intellectual, spiritual, and philosophical thought of American Muslims.

Fraser-Rahim is an assistant professor in the Department of Intelligence and Security Studies at The Citadel. In addition, he is the Executive Director, North America for Quilliam International, the world’s oldest counter-extremist organization, which has an office in Washington, D.C.

America’s Other Muslims: Imam W.D. Mohammed, Islamic Reform, and the Making of American Islam will be available for purchase through Amazon or the publisher, Roman & Littlefield.

Black History Quiz Bowl

Saturday, Feb. 29
9 a.m.
Copeland Auditorium in Grimsley Hall, on The Citadel’s campus
Free, open to the public

The Citadel collaborates with the Mu Alpha Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Inc. to serve as the host site for the annual Black History Quiz Bowl. Students from schools in Berkeley, Charleston, Colleton, and Dorchester counties are invited to participate in the competition each year. The student teams will compete at the elementary, middle and high school levels.

Other February events

Greater Issues Address: Anita Zucker

Tuesday, Feb. 4
12:15 p.m.
McAlister Field House, The Citadel campus
Free, open to the public (limited seating)

The first Greater Issues address of 2020 will be given by Anita Zucker, the namesake of The Citadel’s Zucker Family School of Education.

The address will be on Tuesday, Feb. 4 at 12:15 in McAlister Field House. The event is open to the public, with limited seating available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Zucker is the chairperson and chief executive officer of The Intertech Group.

In 2014, Zucker signed a $4 million gift agreement with The Citadel designed to elevate the Zucker Family School of Education to national prominence through development of scholarly and practical tools for improving education and noteworthy direct assistance to area classroom teachers and school leaders. In naming the Zucker Family School of Education, The Citadel marked its first school named after a substantial donor.

The Greater Issues Series was founded in 1954 to engage Citadel cadets’ interest and knowledge in important topics of the day. Since it was established by the Mills B. Lane Memorial Foundation, the series has brought presidents, heads of state, scholars, diplomats, journalists and distinguished business and military leaders to The Citadel, its cadets, students, faculty and staff and the Charleston community.

The Fourth German-American Business Summit

Wednesday, Feb. 5
11:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Gaillard Conference Center, 95 Calhoun St., Charleston, SC
Open to the public; registration required

The 4th annual German-American Business Summit will bring together German companies in the Southeast who are looking to establish stronger ties with the undergraduate education in the area.

The event will include a job and internship expo, keynote presentations and panel discussions from business leaders, and a networking reception.

“We are excited to help sponsor this fantastic opportunity for students in any of The Citadel’s programs to build relationships with employers in South Carolina and beyond,” said Amy Emm, Ph.D., a professor of German at The Citadel.   

No knowledge of German is necessary to attend the summit.

The summit is made possible by the College of Charleston’s German Program, School of Languages, Cultures, and World Affairs, Career Center, and School of Business, in partnership with The Citadel and Trident Technical College.

Tickets are $40; students, faculty and staff get in free.

To register or find more information, click here.

10th Anniversary: Storm The Citadel event for kids

Saturday, Feb. 8
8 a.m. – 2 p.m.
The Citadel campus
Free, open to the public

Celebrating its tenth anniversary, the 2020 Storm The Citadel competition will challenge young competitors with science, math and engineering challenges as they design, build and test their trebuchets, or medieval-style catapults, as well as robots and water bottle rockets.

The Feb. 8 event, for K-12 grade students, will once again bring up to 3,000 visitors to campus for what is now a tradition for many of the teams that compete. The team coming from the farthest distance: The St. Augustine Sea Cadets, from Florida.

Co-hosted by Google and The Citadel’s STEM Center of Excellence along with the School of Engineering, Zucker Family School of Education and the Swain Family School of Science and Mathematics, Storm The Citadel promotes STEM education and allows students to use the skills they learn in the classroom in tangible, exciting ways.

Teams traveling to campus with their teachers, coaches and families will battle in the day-long event that includes four competitions:

• Bridge building
• Robotics
• Trebuchet (medieval-style launching device)
• Water bottle rocket competitions

Citadel Intelligence Ethics Conference

Tuesday, Feb. 11 – Wednesday, Feb. 12
7:30 a.m. – 8:30 p.m.
The Citadel campus
Two events are free and open to the public; registration required for full conference

The Citadel’s Department of Intelligence and Security Studies will host a major conference that will include a historic gathering of the FBI’s lead investigators for Watergate. In addition to that panel, the conference will also host a former FBI agent who recently published the book, Disrupt, Discredit, and Divide: How the New FBI Damages Democracy.

Those two events are free and open to the public — first come, first served.

On Tuesday, Feb. 11, from 6 – 7:30 p.m., Mike German, a former FBI undercover agent and whistleblower, will present what he describes as a troubling account of the modern FBI.

The next day, from 6 – 8:30 p.m., The Citadel will reunite the FBI’s lead investigators for Watergate for the first time since the scandal. This panel will illuminate the FBI’s role in the Watergate investigation and attribute the success of the Watergate investigation to a handful of special agents who worked, against incredible odds and amidst dysfunctional Bureau leadership, to follow the evidence.

For more information on either of these events, click here.

The full title of the two-day conference is “Legally Immoral Activity: Testing the Limits of Intelligence Collection.” It will focus on the legal, ethical, social, economic, historical and political aspects of a western democratic government’s ability to protect its citizens. The conference is being headed by one of America’s renowned experts on intelligence ethics, Citadel professor, author, editor and former FBI instructor, Jan Goldman, Ph.D.

The intelligence conference will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 11 and Wednesday, Feb. 12. It is expected to attract more than 300 attendees from a variety of intelligence professions. Conference registration is open to the public and can be accessed here.

Citadel Graduate College open house

Tuesday, Feb. 11
6 – 7:30 p.m.
Johnson Hagood Stadium, 4th Floor Club Level
Registration required; free and open to the public

The Citadel Graduate College (CGC) will hold an open house for those who are interested in graduate programs, undergraduate degree completion programs, or online classes. The open house will be Tuesday, Feb. 11, from 6 – 7:30 p.m. in the 4th floor of Johnson Hagood Stadium.

The open house gives prospective students a chance to learn about the more than 70 programs offered by CGC. They will also have the chance to meet with program faculty and staff from locations such as: Admissions, Financial Aid, the Student Success Center, Daniel Library and the Career Center.

To register for the open house, click here.

The Citadel’s Cub Scout Adventure Rodeo

Saturday, Feb. 15
9 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Summerall Field, The Citadel campus
$15 to pre-register and $20 at the door, open to the public

In partnership with Citadel Athletics, participants will also receive — for their $15 entry fee — a Chick-fil-A lunch and ticket to the Citadel vs. Samford basketball game for the Bulldog’s Scout Day, happening right after the rodeo.

To register, or find more information, click here.

SEISA Annual Conference

Thursday, Feb. 20 – Saturday, Feb. 22
Various locations
$25 tickets, open to the public

The Citadel and College of Charleston are co-hosting the Southeastern Immigration Studies Association’s annual conference, which will take place on Feb. 20 – 22. 

The conference promises to bring together interdisciplinary perspectives from scholars, practitioners, and community-based advocates to discuss pressing contemporary issues related to immigration in the Southeast.

The event will take place at the College of Charleston on Friday, Feb. 21, and the keynote address will take place at The Citadel’s Riverview Room on Feb. 22. 

The public is invited to attend, and registration costs $25.

For more information, click here or contact Dr. Nancy Aguirre at naguirre@citadel.edu.

Ecos: Arte Urgente

Thursday, Feb. 20 – Sunday, March 22
12 – 6 p.m., Wednesdays – Saturdays only
Cannon Street Art Center, 134 Cannon St., Charleston, SC
Free, open to the public

Ecos (Echoes) is a collaborative, multimedia art exhibition featuring the stories of Latino immigrants in the Lowcountry, interpreted by 19 select Latino South Carolina visual artists.

The exhibit combines the power of art and storytelling to assert a more accurate and humane understanding of immigration. Visitors to the exhibition have the opportunity to listen to each audio story and read its transcription as they view the artwork inspired by it.

This Citadel Oral History Program initiative has been made possible through the support of the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation and was coordinated in partnership with Palmetto Luna Arts.

Partners: Germany and the Carolinas – reflections and opportunities

Thursday, Feb. 20
6:30 p.m.
The Citadel Museum Reading Room, Daniel Library
Free, open to the public

With big names like BMW and Mercedes Benz, it’s no secret that the Carolinas and Germany share a strong connection.

Adding to that relationship is Honorary Consul Klaus E. Becker, who will visit The Citadel to speak about the partnership. Becker will be on campus Thursday, Feb. 20 at 6:30 in The Citadel Museum Reading Room, on the third floor of Daniel Library.

“We are excited to host Honorary Consul Becker, whose talk promises to expand our view of SC’s economic and cultural partnerships with Germany,” said Amy Emm, Ph.D., a professor of German at The Citadel. “We hope this talk will bring together students and faculty of Modern Languages with Political Science, Security and Intelligence Studies, Business, and anyone with a stake in transatlantic relations.”

The event will include a discussion of Germany’s history, culture and politics. There will also be a Q&A after the discussion, giving the audience to ask about things like perspectives on current events and how they may affect the German-Carolina partnership, business or transatlantic relationships in general.

Becker was born in Germany, but currently lives in Charlotte, North Carolina. Over the years, Becker has founded several companies involved with in the international steel trade. He has also served for many years as the president of the German American Chamber of Commerce in North Carolina. He was also appointed as honoral Consul in 2013.

in 2014, Becker founded the N.C. Zeitgeist Foundation, which works to inform and foster dialogue about Germany’s current and historic influence of industry, culture and arts in the region.

A Walk for Education

Saturday, Feb. 22
10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Burke High School, 244 President St., Charleston, SC
Free, open to the public

Cadets from The Citadel’s chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) will once again volunteer at this year’s A Walk for Education on Saturday, Feb. 22.

The Charleston Professionals chapter of the NSBE will hold the event at Burke High School, in downtown Charleston, from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.

The goal of the event is to increase awareness of the opportunities available through education, particularly in STEM fields.

The Charleston Professionals Chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers is fulfilling the NSBE mission locally through dedication to STEM opportunities for pre-college and collegiate students as well as professionals.

24^th APPE Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl National Championship

Saturday, Feb. 22 – Sunday, Feb. 23
Sheraton Atlanta Downtown Hotel in Atlanta, Georgia
Free, open to the public

Five Citadel cadets will compete in the Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl National Championship on Saturday, Feb. 22 and Sunday, Feb. 23.

The Citadel team successfully qualified for the nationals after participating in the Southeast Regional Ethics Bowl — which was held in Jacksonville, Florida in November 2019.

The other schools from the Southeast Bowl who qualified for the national competition are, in order of placement: the University of Baltimore, Seton Hall and the Naval Academy.

Team members learn to engage with the ethical issues of each case and learn to acknowledge diverse perspectives and explore alternative points of view. In an ethics bowl competition all sides of a controversial issue are explored and teams are expected to listen and respond respectfully to questions and comments.

The Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl National Competition is organized by the Association for Practical and Professional Ethics, a comprehensive, international organization advancing scholarship, education and practice in practical and professional ethics.

The Krause Center for Leadership and Ethics has sponsored The Citadel’s Ethics Bowl Team since fall of 2011. The Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl, sponsored by the Association for Practical and Professional Ethics, consists of a national tiered competition in which hundreds of teams compete each year.

Uncivil War

Tuesday, Feb. 25
4 p.m.
Bond 165, on The Citadel’s campus
Free, open to the public

Just in time for election season, The Citadel will be screening a documentary called Uncivil War. The film was produced by the Bertelsmann Foundation, a transatlantic think tank that also covers a range of domestic issues.

According to the foundation, Uncivil War “covers topics such as gerrymandering, voter suppression, disinformation, and whether or not our votes matter anymore. Uncivil War unravels a web of threats to American elections, deciphering truth from fiction, and exposes a hidden war against democracy itself. Through conversations with experts, politicians, and activists fighting on both sides, we examine our system of government and search for a way to defend it.”

The free film screening will be held Tuesday, Feb. 25 at 4 p.m. in Bond 165.