The University of Puget Sound is proud to welcome Bishop Cedrick D. Bridgeforth as the keynote speaker for the 40th Annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. Bridgeforth, who will also serve as the university’s Spring 2026 Swope Endowed Lecturer, will deliver his address at 7 p.m. in Schneebeck Concert Hall. The event is free and open to the public.
Bridgeforth is the resident bishop of the Greater Northwest Episcopal Area of The United Methodist Church and a passionate advocate for social justice. He brings more than 20 years of leadership experience across pastoral, administrative, and innovative capacities. His prior roles include serving as a lead pastor for multiethnic, multicultural congregations in California and as a district superintendent in one of the most diverse regions of United Methodism. He is also the author of several books, including Alabama Grandson: A Black, Gay Minister’s Passage Out of Hiding, and holds a Doctor of Education in organizational leadership. He founded 20/20 Leadership Lessons, Inc., a coaching organization for clergy and nonprofit leaders.
This year’s event marks a meaningful milestone, as Bridgeforth is the first United Methodist Bishop to deliver the Swope Endowed Lecture, honoring the tradition shaped by the Methodist values of religious and spiritual inquiry central to the series founder, Jane Hammer Swope ’42.
In addition to the keynote, the program will feature welcome remarks from Puget Sound President Isiaah Crawford, the presentation of the annual Keep Living the Dream award, and a closing call to action from University Chaplain Rev. Dave Wright ’96. It is hosted by the Office of Institutional Equity & Diversity in collaboration with the Swope Endowed Lectures.
