Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration
About Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration
2026 Event Details
Monday, Jan. 19, 2026
8:30 a.m. – Noon
F. Scott Fitzgerald Theatre
Join the Mayor and Council of Rockville and Rockville’s Human Rights Commission at this free event, themed “Reclaiming the Dream: Justice, Equity, and Action,” as we explore what it means to advance equity and justice in our communities today. Through deep and engaging presentations and conversations on equitable governance, shared leadership, systemic change, and restorative practices, this event will highlight the power of collective action, civic innovation, and healing justice. Together, we’ll reflect, reimagine, and recommit to building a future rooted in justice for all. Continental breakfast available while supplies last.
Schedule of Events
| Time | Activity |
| 8:30 a.m. | Doors Open |
| 8:30 – 10:30 a.m. | Continental Breakfast, while supplies last. |
| 9 a.m. – Noon | Welcome by Rockville’s Human Rights Commission. |
| Opening Remarks by the Mayor and Council of Rockville. | |
| Presentation Track One: Bending the Arc Toward Justice Together Presented by Razia F. Kosi, LCSW-C, EdD, Razia Kosi Counseling and Consulting. | |
| Presentation Track Two: Justice for All: Fulfilling the Promise – Advancing Equity in Policy, Access, and Public Services. Presented by William N. Flagler Jr., MPA,MA,CEM,CPM, Flagler Enterprises, Crisis Management Consultant and Speaker. | |
| Presentation Track Three: Justice, Peace, and the Work of Repair – Promoting Systems Change Through Impact, Innovation, and Leadership. Presented by: Mary Frances Kenion, National Alliance to End Homelessness. | |
| Presentation Track Four: Justice Beyond Words: Equity in Action – Fostering Hope and Resilience Through Restorative Justice Dialogue. Presented by: Kyle A. Warfield, Esq. | |
| Closing Remarks. |
Event Presenters
Dr. Razia F. Kosi is a district-level educational leader in a highly diverse Maryland public school system . Her leadership centers on advancing equity, elevating trauma-informed practices, championing student voice initiatives and developing proactive strategies to address and mitigate hate/bias incidents. Beyond her public service role, she is a mental health professional working to end the stigma surrounding mental health in the South Asian community and was the founder of Counselors Helping (South) Asians, Inc. (CHAI). Her contributions to scholarship include authoring chapters in books related to mental health, presenting at professional conferences and appointment to adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins University. Advocating for both mental health and education, she has served on executive boards for both national and local organizations serving the South Asian and Asian American Pacific Islander communities. To increase diversity in K-12 education, she cofounded and is a past president of the Asian American Educators of Howard County. She is a commissioner for the Howard County Executive’s AAPI Commission. She operates a specialized private practice, providing counseling primarily to women of color and Muslim clients across various racial and ethnic backgrounds.
William N. Flagler Jr. is the director of the Arlington County Department of Public Safety Communications and Emergency Management where he is responsible for leading and managing the coordination of emergency management services for Arlington County, including the Emergency Communications Center. He oversees public safety communications and manages emergency management planning and response in coordination with county departments, regional associations, nonprofit organizations and an extensive citizen/volunteer network in Arlington County. Previously, he served as deputy director of emergency management. He was also the founding director of the Department of Emergency Management and Safety at Northern Virginia Community College, the largest higher education institution in Virginia, where he successfully coordinated the response and recovery associated with an active shooter in 2009 and other complex emergency incidents. He was also an assistant coordinator for Loudoun County (Virginia) fire, rescue and emergency management. He has nearly 20 years of progressively responsible executive leadership experience. He holds master’s degrees in public administration and homeland security, a certified emergency manager designation, the Virginia Professional Emergency Manager designation, and is a certified public manager. He is a graduate of the Naval Post Graduate School’s Center for Homeland Defense and Security Executive Leadership Program and of Leadership Arlington. He also received training from the Harvard University Crisis Leadership Program.
Mary Frances Kenion is chief equity officer at the National Alliance to End Homelessness. She has spent more than 18 years helping communities improve their homelessness response systems. Before joining the Alliance, she was a senior manager for homeless services at ICF where she worked closely with communities on accelerating placements to permanent housing for people experiencing homelessness while reducing racial disparities in outcomes within homeless response systems. She led several major projects including the development and delivery of a racial equity foundational workshop series for dozens of communities, spearheading the development of a racial equity learning collaborative for Department of Housing and Urban Development training and technical assistance providers, leading Oregon’s Task Force on Homelessness and Racial Disparities, and codesigning a framework grounded in targeted universalism to address unsheltered homelessness in Oregon through an executive order. She is a Washington, D.C. native who lives in Southern Maryland with her wife, their twin boys and dog. [SS1] She holds a Master in Public Administration and bachelor’s degree in social science with a minor in sociology from Ashford University. She serves as secretary of the Charles County Commission on Individuals with Disabilities and is a swimming coach for Special Olympics Southern Maryland. She is a member of the Impact Center’s Women’s Executive Leadership Program fall 2024 cohort.
Kyle A. Warfield is a proud native Detroiter, licensed Maryland lawyer and principal of KAW Praxis. Over the last nine years, he has worked in public higher education as an inclusion and compliance specialist, monitoring commitments to diversity by promoting best practices; providing custom training and consultation services; developing recruitment, hiring and retention resources for senior leaders; and actively collaborating with the campus community to solve problems. Before that, he served as a child welfare lawyer in and around Baltimore, representing foster youth in family court and helping to facilitate forever homes. An avid motorsports fan and casual disc golf player, he lives in Montgomery County and remains insistent that nothing inherent to any of us should keep us from an opportunity at belonging.
Contact
Recreation and Parks Department
Special Events Division
240-314-8620
specialevents@rockvillemd.gov
Hours
Monday – Friday
8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.