Kenja Hassan receives 2024 MLK Jr. Staff Servant-Leadership Award

Kenja Hassan, assistant vice president of cultural relations for Arizona State University’s Office of Government and Community Engagement, has been chosen to receive ASU's MLK Jr. Staff Servant-Leadership Award for 2024. She will be recognized at the university's MLK Jr. breakfast celebration on Jan. 18. 

In her role, Hassan serves as a liaison between ASU and diverse communities throughout the Valley. Her long list of accomplishments include bringing college preparation programs to American Indian youth on reservations; orchestrating national dialogs on pressing issues in the nation's capital; guiding student service projects across Arizona; and launching a series of reports on the state of Arizona's diverse communities. 

Hassan says ASU's mission — laid out in its charter — to be measured not by whom it excludes but by whom it includes and how they succeed has encourgaged and guided her in the workplace.

"Since ASU's adoption of the charter in 2014, affirming an enduring commitment to inclusion and taking responsibility for the overall well-being of the communities it serves, I have been encouraged to view my workplace as a space in which and through which I can contribute to a version of the 'beloved community,' which Dr. King envisioned as humanity’s ultimate potential," Hassan explained.

It is this dedication to serving her community that made Hassan an obvious choice for the award. 

According to Martin Luther King Jr., the beloved community is a vision of harmonious, compassionate and just society founded on "agape" — an ancient term denoting a love that extends understanding, creative, redemptive goodwill to all humankind, despite our differences.

"The journey toward Dr. King's vision is a continuous one that can only happen when millions of us walk together," Hassan said.

Answer: It is beyond inspiring to be acknowledged by colleagues at ASU in this manner, especially in this auspicious year. It was 60 years ago this summer that Dr. King spoke at ASU and 60 years ago this summer when the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was signed into law. Reflecting on the two generations since this landmark legislation and those that followed in this spirit, it's evident that our nation has made monumental strides toward becoming a globally welcoming society, dismantling discriminatory practices based on race, religion, color, sex or national origin. The transformation is palpable, with cities like Tempe, once known as a "sundown town," now standing as one of the most diverse and inclusive in Arizona, touted as among the most livable in the United States. 

Q: How have your life experiences shaped you into the leader you are today?   

A: Both (my) parents were involved in the Civil Rights Movement, especially my mother who even served as a marshal on the March on Washington in 1963, escorting Malcolm X for a period of time. Despite an elementary school being across the street, my mother had to navigate two buses and a streetcar to attend a school across town due to segregation. The injustice of being denied access to certain playgrounds and public pools fueled her and her sister's determination, leading them to initiate a petition advocating for the inclusion of Black students in the neighborhood school.

During high school and college, my mother joined the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, an organization that occasionally collaborated with Dr. King. Engaging in nonviolent demonstrations and sit-ins, she aimed to bring attention to the desegregation efforts in Southern states, where media coverage was scarce. Additionally, she worked with the Lawyers Committee for Equal Rights challenging discriminatory housing practices in affluent areas of D.C. and its suburbs. Meanwhile, my father recounts his journey to Mississippi, where he met Fannie Lou Hamer and heard firsthand the brutal consequences she endured for advocating Black people's right to vote, including beatings, imprisonment and forced sterilization. 

My parents instilled a commitment to working for the betterment of all, especially those facing challenging circumstances. Both worked their entire careers in social service positions in mental health and labor unions, demonstrating a deep concern for the well-being of strangers. They acted on the belief that improving the lives of a broad population contributes to a better future for their descendants. Their values of fairness, compassion and empathy permeate my actions within the community. Through their stories and perspectives on equality and justice, they inspired me to actively contribute to my community and ensured I understood the historical struggles that paved the way for my present comforts.

Q: Who or what keeps you inspired and motivated to serve others? 

A: I have observed and learned from other people’s enduring struggles for equality and dignity throughout history. My grandfather serves as a personal inspiration. Born in 1915, he faced the harsh reality of being left to fend for himself by the age of 10, a fate shared by many impoverished children in the 1920s. Despite lacking stable parental guidance, he navigated his own path.  

As a soldier in World War II, he was responsible for transporting German POWs through the United States. Like many other Black soldiers in World War I and II, he was the subject of harassment from white people ... My grandfather said that they would move the POWs by train and, even with the shades drawn, white people would throw rocks at the passing train cars, shouting derogatory words at Black soldiers. He remembered that one German solider asked him why he was fighting in this war for a country that abused Black people and made its disdain for them known. My granddad ... only wanted the respect afforded to other veterans and the chance to be fully equal citizens in American society.

Despite adversity, my grandfather overcame the early loss of his mother, abuse and abandonment by his father, along with the pervasive segregation and racism of the time. Remarkably, he purchased a comfortable home, sustained a marriage for over 50 years and raised two accomplished daughters. His extraordinary resilience serves as a daily inspiration, urging me to appreciate the comforts and stability he fought for and to extend the blessings of my fortunate life to others. 

Q: How have you incorporated Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s values of service and inclusion in your everyday life? 

A: In Dr. King's vision, inclusion transcends tolerance; it involves actively embracing and celebrating differences. Simultaneously, he viewed service not as a singular act but as an ongoing commitment to the well-being of others. To embody these principles, I consciously engage in listening and learning from individuals with diverse perspectives and experiences. 

I weave these values into my professional life by advocating for dialogs that foster a greater understanding of cultural differences. In both my workplace and volunteer activities, I encourage colleagues to perceive these differences as opportunities for learning rather than as obstacles. I actively promote a culture of connection, urging colleagues to reach out, celebrate each other's achievements and provide support to those who may need encouragement in their work. 

Within ASU, I initiated the African and African American Faculty and Staff Association, aiming to help employees discover support networks across the university. This group serves as a space for colleagues to share information about impactful programs and projects while offering opportunities for mutual support.

To further assist new staff in establishing connections, I, along with a dedicated team of volunteers, established the Peer Pair program. This initiative aims to facilitate meaningful connections among African American staff, fostering a sense of community and support within the university environment. Through these efforts, I strive to embody Dr. King's values of inclusion and service, creating an environment where everyone feels recognized and connected. 

Q: What has been your most memorable experience or experiences of helping others? 

A: Some of my most memorable experiences have been those where I felt the essence of the human spirit through seemingly inconsequential acts that held profound significance for others.

At age 15, I participated with a Quaker teen group in West Virginia in clearing weeds from a segregated graveyard after hiking a hundred miles on the Appalachian Trail to get to the town. There were only a handful of power tools, so most of us wielded garden shears and scythes. Unbeknownst to us, local Black women whose ancestors were buried in that cemetery prepared a feast for us on the last night and told us stories about the deceased.

As the sole Black member of the group, I felt a unique blend of awkwardness and honor, observing my white peers working in service of the descendants of enslaved Black people. Both groups underwent transformation through that encounter, unraveling the emotional legacy of segregation that often remains hidden. That event reminded me to appreciate the courage of Quaker abolitionists and how the parents of these teens supported ongoing service-mindedness among their children.   

The most enduring memory remains the joy of the human spirit that transcends cultural differences when people are genuinely open to both giving and receiving help. Whether building fences on the Navajo Nation, constructing compost toilets at an orphanage in Nogales, Mexico, or cleaning up alleys in Phoenix and Yuma, these initiatives reconnected me to the transformative power of shared experiences that come through collaborative acts of service. 

Q: What advice would you give to future leaders here at ASU?  
 
A: My advice to future leaders at ASU is to read Dr. King’s work, including the speech he gave here in 1964, and reflect on how ASU’s charter enables faculty, staff and students to act upon a profoundly moving and shared vision for a more just world.

Dr. King’s teachings, following in the tradition of nonviolence he and his mentors developed from studying the work of Gandhi and the Indian struggle for independence, are a path toward a conflict resolution and community-building that uphold universal ideals of human dignity.

Both the ASU Charter and Dr. King's teachings emphasize inclusivity, societal responsibility and the pursuit of the common good. ASU’s future leaders should take to heart that ASU’s charter, when fully effectuated, allows us to move toward Dr. King’s vision of the "beloved community" within our immediate spheres of influence.

More 2024 MLK Jr. awardees

Student Servant-Leadership award: Jamelyn Ebelacker

Faculty Servant-Leadership Award: Jeffrey R. Wilson

Community Servant-Leadership Award: Larry Fitzgerald Foundation