Morris College President, Dr. Said Sewell Named Grand Marshal of the 25th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dream Walk
Sumter, SC (01/13/2025) — The University of South Carolina Sumter has announced the Grand Marshal for the 25th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dream Walk will be Morris College President, Dr. Said Sewell.
Said Sewell, Ph.D., CFRM is the eleventh president of Morris College and assumed office in 2024 after a national search. He previously served as the director of the Office of Academics, Research, and Student Success for the Atlanta University Center Consortium (AUCC). Prior to joining the AUCC, Sewell held numerous leadership positions at institutions of higher learning, including roles as the vice president for student affairs at Morehouse College, as provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at Lincoln University in Missouri, as assistant provost for academic affairs and dean of undergraduate studies at Kent State University in Ohio, and as the acting assistant vice president for academic affairs and executive director of the Academic Success Center at Fort Valley State University.
Dr. Sewell is the founder, executive director, and chairman of the board of directors for the Center for African-American Males: Research, Success, and Leadership Inc., a research and modeling center for the advancement of African-American males. Dr. Sewell has received numerous awards based on his scholarship and civic service, including the University System of Georgia's African-American Male Initiative Best Practices Leadership Award, the Visionary Award from the Follow Me Foundation, Inc., and the National Conference of Black Political Scientists' Teacher of the Year Award.
A native of Houston, Texas, Sewell entered Morehouse College in 1988 and graduated in 1992 with a bachelor's in political science. He also holds a master of public administration in public policy from Texas Southern University and a doctorate from Clark Atlanta University in political science. He earned fellowships with associations and colleges including the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, the University System of Georgia, Harvard University, the University of Nebraska, and the James (Jimmy) Earl Carter Presidential Library.
Dr. Sewell has co-authored three books, "Georgia State Politics", "Conflicting Democracy: A Critical Analysis of America's Political Process" and "We the People: Reflections on American Politics". He is currently completing work on two books: "Empowering Black Male Students to Greatness" and "Let Us Make Man: A Conversation with Black Men on Saving Black Boys".
The Dream Walk will be held on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Monday, January 20. The event is free and open to the public and is held at the USC Sumter Nettles Building (near the corner of University Dr. and Theater Dr.). Registration for the walk will begin at 8:30 a.m. A program of celebration will be held at 9 a.m., and will include a speech from the walk's Grand Marshal, Dr. Said Sewell, student presentations, and songs from the Morris College Choir. The 3-mile walk will begin at 9:40 a.m.
The Dream Walk is sponsored and organized by Central Carolina Technical College, Morris College, and USC Sumter. The committee's goal is to acknowledge and celebrate the meaning and purpose of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday.
For more information on the Dream Walk, please contact Alethia Hummel, USC Sumter, alethiah@mailbox.sc.edu or 803-938-3728.
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Morris College President, Dr. Said Sewell, will be the Grand Marshal of the 25th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dream Walk.