A 5K run to support the ongoing research of “Call My Name,” which documents and shares the stories of African Americans in Clemson University’s history, will return for its third annual race in March.

The run organized by Rhondda Robinson Thomas, the Calhoun Lemon Professor of Literature at Clemson, is scheduled for Sunday, March 9, from 8-10 a.m. Runners will gather in the Carillon Garden before running a route that guides them past sites of significance for Black history at Clemson, including Sikes Hall, Fort Hill, and the Woodland Cemetery, Andrew P. Calhoun Family Plot, and African American Burial Ground.

Click here to learn more and sign up to run!

“We’ve moved the date for the 5K to March this year, hoping warmer weather will bring out even more people for our annual family-friendly event. We will also be highlighting the important contributions of Black women to Clemson history during Women’s History Month,” Thomas said.

Registration for the “Call My Name” 5K can be completed at the run’s official website. Those who register by February 18 will receive a commemorative race T-shirt. All participants will receive a pamphlet that includes information about significant sites along the route, the Black Heritage Trail Project, and a person associated with one of the seven generations of “Call My Name.” This year’s 5K will also feature Flo’s Café’s mobile coffee bar, an Upstate SC Black History Exhibit, and a DJ.  The run is sponsored by the College of Arts and Humanities, Clemson Athletics, and Clemson’s Graduate School, with more sponsorship opportunities available. Businesses, organizations, or Clemson University departments, colleges, or schools interested in being sponsors for the run should contact Sawdayah Brownlee at [email protected] or sign up through the Call My Name website.

“We are excited to continue our partnership with Dr. Rhondda Thomas and the Call My Name project,” added Clemson Director of Athletics Graham Neff. “The 5K has become an event we really enjoy each year. Dr. Thomas and her team, who work tirelessly to tell the history of Clemson University, and the 5K is a valuable experience for participants and many student-athletes and staff in our department who engage in the event through volunteer work.”