By Carlye McKillip, contributor

ROME, Ga. — Berry College Volunteer Services (BCVS) has started planning for this year’s MLK Day of Service which will take place on Jan. 20, 2020, from 8:30 a.m. to noon.

While the event will not take place until the beginning of next semester, BCVS already opened registration for both volunteers and community partners, a change in the previous process.

“With the spring semester starting a week later this year, there is only one week for us to prepare and assign volunteers to sites,” said Kelsey Doerr, community partner coordinator. “By having registration take place the last month of the fall semester, we will be able to have a better understanding of the number of volunteers and community partners participating in the event.”

Not only has registration opened earlier, but the deadline to sign up for the event has also been pushed forward. The registration deadline for both volunteers and community partners to sign up is December 13 at midnight.

“MLK Day of Service is one of our largest service days of the year, and it’s always nice to see a large group of Berry students showing their support for the community,” said Grettie Reifenberger, campus community coordinator. “We are hoping that opening registration earlier will increase the number of volunteers participating in the event.”

MLK Day of Service is a national service day that is focused on empowering individuals in order to better communities and bridge barriers. Students will first gather in the Krannert Ballroom to hear from a guest speaker then will be dismissed to their assigned site and spend the rest of the morning working with nonprofit organizations around Rome.

Students can sign up to for MLK Day of Service 2020  at https://berry.presence.io/form/mlk-day-2020-volunteer-registration. The first 250 volunteers to register will receive a free T-shirt.