This year’s Martin Luther King Jr. address “Building a Dream” will be presented by award winning author and activist Van Jones on Friday in the Bone Student Center Brown Ballroom.

The activities begin at 4 p.m. in Fell Hall 446 where Jones will talk to students interested in the Political Engagement Project and the American Democracy Project, followed by a reception at 5 p.m., dinner at 6 p.m. and his speech, which will proceed dinner, Jay Groves, assistant to the president, said.

The event is co-sponsored by the Office of the President and the student chapter of the NAACP on ISU’s campus. Reservations are required and seats are $15 for students and $35 for nonstudents.

“Each year, we meet with the advisor of the NAACP and some of the students,” Groves explained. “We talk about what kinds of speakers have been popular this year — what kind of message that they are sending – and look at the different things such as availability, cost and the message, and we come up with a person.”

In his 20-year career as a social entrepreneur, Jones has been very active in areas such as environmental activism and civil rights. The Yale-educated attorney has co-founded the successful nonprofit organizations Green for All, the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights and Color of Change.

“He’s the author of some bestselling books “The Green Collar Economy” and “Rebuild the Dream,” Groves said. “He has worked with President Obama, so he has been very active and very engaged.”

In 2009, Jones was appointed by President Obama to the position of Special Advisor for Green Jobs. He helped to further the president’s climate and energy initiatives. He oversaw $80 billion in green energy recovery spending.

Contact Julie Barnhill, Presidential and Trustee Events, for special accommodation at 438-8790. Allow sufficient time to arrange accommodations.