WS Chronicle

On Monday, Jan. 20, The Chronicle will host  the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Prayer Breakfast at Benton Convention Center in downtown Winston-Salem. 

The breakfast, which dates back to the early 1980s, is held to advance King’s dream of racial harmony, unity, and equity. Serving as the unofficial kickoff to MLK Day in the city, the breakfast provides a platform for individuals from culturally diverse backgrounds to come together, share a meal, partake in an inspirational message, and unite in prayer as one community.

The keynote address will be delivered by Corey D.B. Walker, current dean of Wake Forest University School of Divinity, Wake Forest professor of the Humanities, and inaugural director of the program in African American studies.

A native of Norfolk, Virginia, Walker stayed home and earned his bachelor’s in finance from Norfolk State University. He holds a master of divinity degree from the Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology of Virginia Union University, a master of theological studies degree from Harvard University, and a Ph.D. in American studies from The College of William and Mary. 

He also holds a master of arts degree, ad eundem gradum, from Brown University and is an ordained American Baptist clergyperson who speaks at events across the country. 

Walker has an extensive record of scholarly accomplishment and academic leadership. He served as vice president, dean and professor of religion and society at the Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology at Virginia Union University; founding dean of the College of Arts, Sciences, Business and Education and inaugural John W. and Anna Hodgin Hanes Professor of the Humanities at Winston-Salem State University; and chair of the department of Africana Studies at Brown University, where he was also a tenured professor and faculty affiliate in the department of American Studies, department of Religious Studies, Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies, Center for the Study of Race and Ethnicity, and Committee on Science and Technology Studies.

Walker’s research, teaching, and public scholarship spans the areas of American and African American social and religious thought, ethics, and religion and American public life. He is author and editor of several books and has published over 60 articles, essays, and book chapters in a wide variety of scholarly journals and publications. Dean Walker also served as book review editor and associate editor of The Journal of the American Academy of Religion, generally considered the top academic journal in the field.

Derwin Montgomery, president and publisher of The Chronicle, said he first met Walker when he began working at his alma mater Winston-Salem State University. Montgomery said Walker was an inspiring leader who left a mark on the university.

“His visionary leadership and commitment to education left an indelible mark on the university and its students,” Montgomery continued. “Now as Dean of the Divinity School at Wake Forest University, he continues to inspire and lead with a passion for academic excellence and the pursuit of transformative change in our communities. 

“Dean Walker is a true bridge-builder and a shining example of what it means to lead with purpose and integrity.”

The 2025 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Prayer Breakfast is scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. Doors at the Benton Convention Center, 301 West Fifth Street, are scheduled to open at 7 a.m.; breakfast will be served at 7:30 a.m. For more information and to purchase tickets visit https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-chronicle-mlk-prayer-breakfast-tickets-1124681957009.