ITHACA, N.Y. -- The 2005 James A. Perkins Prize for Interracial Understanding and Harmony at Cornell University will be awarded to the Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration Committee during a ceremony and reception April 29 at 4:30 p.m. in the Memorial Room of Willard Straight Hall on the Cornell campus. The award, carrying a $5,000 cash prize, was created and endowed by Cornell alumnus and trustee emeritus Thomas W. Jones.

The King Committee was among 11 nominations considered by a panel of students, faculty members and administrators. Two other finalists for the 2005 Perkins Prize will be honored at the event. They are: the organizers for "Daniel Pearl Music Day: Harmony for Humanity at Cornell" and members of Cornell's Applied Economics and Management Diversity Program.

Established in 2003, the King Commemoration Committee is composed of faculty, students and administrators as well as community members and is co-sponsored by a broad range of departments and student organizations. This year the committee selected Yolanda King, eldest child of Martin Luther King and Coretta Scott King, as its annual speaker. In a talk that wove spoken word with dramatic performance, King delivered a brilliant presentation in February, titled "Open My Eyes, Open My Soul: Discovering the Power of Diversity," to a capacity audience at Sage Chapel.

The Perkins Prize was established in 1994 by Jones '69, to honor Cornell President Emeritus James A. Perkins, the university's seventh president, who died in 1998. The Perkins Prize is awarded annually to the program or organization -- or student, faculty or staff member -- making the most significant contribution to furthering the ideal of university community, while respecting the values of racial diversity. The prize is administered through Cornell's Office of the Dean of Students.