Sacred Heart Honors Martin Luther King, Jr., in Virtual Event

Trustee Eric Wood ’98 urges viewers to continue to serve, even when it’s hard, as King did

Sacred Heart University celebrated the life of Martin Luther King, Jr., with a virtual event on Jan. 21 that featured a conversation with SHU trustee Eric Wood ’98. Wood discussed his experience as a Sacred Heart student of color and the impact King had on his life.

Moderating the event were Robert Johnson ’16, ’17, SHU’s director of multicultural affairs and the multicultural center, and Julie Lawrence ’85, ’17, chief diversity officer. Reverend Sarah Smith, pastor of United Congregational Church in Bridgeport, began the event with a prayer. “We give you thanks for the life and the work of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., we honor today. Doctor King was truly one of your prophets, oh God, mighty in word and deed, and we owe much to his vision and to his sacrifice. And yet, oh God, we do not do justice to Dr. King’s dream of justice if we merely recite his words and enjoy a day off in his name,” said Smith.

John Petillo, president of SHU, gave a welcome address honoring King. “Dr. King always reminded us of our obligation to serve and leave no one behind. Friend or foe, each of us are God’s children, deserving of our outstretched hand. So today, we pause to acknowledge Dr. King’s wisdom and courage; we pause to reflect if we have the strength to respond nonviolently, as he so bravely did,” Petillo said.

During the ensuing discussion, Wood confessed that, when he was younger, he viewed Martin Luther King Day as simply a day off, but he wanted listeners to realize that the holiday is about more than just enjoying a long weekend or the quotes that people post on social media. 

“I don’t want to necessarily share and talk about just the Martin Luther King that would turn the other cheek. Let’s be honest here, in that if he were alive today, he probably would be vilified; he’d be speaking up, he’d be front and center, he’d be challenging leaders, and challenging our community, and he wouldn’t be the loving figure that we all look back on today,” Wood said. 

Wood, who originally lived in the Bronx, explained that, although he scored 770 on his SAT exams, Sacred Heart viewed him as a whole during his application process, taking into consideration his high school GPA, leadership roles and community service. As a first-generation college student, joining SHU’s Board of Trustees “is a full-circle moment, full-circle opportunity and, in the spirit of MLK, to return to the place that gave me an opportunity to further my education, complete my degree and do something different than statistics may have suggested,” he said.

When Wood arrived at Sacred Heart in 1994, he realized there were few people who looked like him or who had similar backgrounds as his. He was looking forward to joining a fraternity on campus, as were a few of his friends who were also people of color. However, the fraternity members they saw all appeared to be white. In fact, finding any student organization with members that looked like them was difficult. 

During their first semester, Wood and his friends worked to begin a chapter of Omega Phi Kappa, a multicultural fraternity. Their philanthropy was to include visits to inner-city Bridgeport to encourage children of color to pursue higher education. When they went before SHU’s Greek Council to present their ideas, they were confronted with the question, “Are you trying to create a gang?” At 17, this was the first time Wood found himself facing such a stereotype. 

However, the group faced their adversity and went on to form the chapter, creating lifelong friendships. They also committed to get involved in other efforts to diversify campus as much as possible. “If I leave you with nothing else today, it wasn’t to sit there and whine about what’s not good. What are you doing to serve and maximize that experience and your voice to at least impact change?” said Wood.

When asked what words of encouragement he would give to current Sacred Heart students of color during the current racial climate, Wood said, “I would challenge our students of color to understand the game, push the limits, but also, let’s not bring each other down.” He encouraged white students and faculty to avoid living “in the middle” and remaining complicit, to ask questions and not to make assumptions.

Watch the conversation with Wood online.