Dr. Willie J. Edwards will be the keynote speaker at the Arlington Sharing the Dream Awards Banquet on January 13, 2006. Edwards is the Texas State District Director of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated.

Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. is leading the effort to construct a national memorial to the movement for racial equality in Washington D.C. Their goal is to raise $100 million to build a monument on the National Mall in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Groundbreaking is scheduled for Fall 2006. Edwards will speak about the movement and the National Build a Dream Program.

Edwards has been a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. since 1970. His many years in Alpha have allowed him to serve his community, the Southwestern Region and the District of Texas in important leadership roles. He is a member of the Xi Tau Lambda Chapter, and has chaired the Constitution Committee and worked on the Legacy Celebration Committee. He currently serves as a College Advisor to the Zeta Tau Chapter, of which he is a chartering member.

Edwards is an Associate Professor, and heads the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice at Texas A&M University-Commerce, formerly East Texas State University. He describes himself as a servant leader, working to give back to his community as a role model and mentor. Edwards has a Bachelor’s degree and a Master’s degree in Sociology from Texas A&M University. In 1989, he earned a Ph.D. in sociology, with an emphasis in criminology, from the University of Minnesota. He has completed extensive research in juvenile delinquency, criminal causality, and race relations.

Tickets for the Martin Luther King Jr. Sharing the Dream Banquet are currently on sale. Call the Star-Telegram Customer Service Office at 817-548-5400 or the Arlington Independent School District at 817-459-7217 for more information.