The speaker for the 2026 Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Breakfast has been announced.
Jay Bailey, the president and CEO of the H.J. Russell Innovation Center for Entrepreneurs, also known as “RICE,” is set to give the keynote speech at the event, held in January.
According to sources at UGA Today, Bailey “leads the world’s largest entrepreneurial hub dedicated to growing, scaling and developing businesses.” His role in RICE supports more than 600 entrepreneurs, maintains over 4,000 jobs, and provides nearly $560 million in economic growth to the Metro Atlanta area.
Bailey has received a number of accolades, including the Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award, the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drum Major for Service Award, and the Maynard Jackson Community Impact Award. He has been recognized as a “Champion of Change: Following in the Footsteps of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.” in 2012, and an Atlanta Business League Man of Influence in 2023.
In service of education, he serves on the University of Georgia Board of Visitors and is an Agnes Scott College Trustee, a board director for the Atlanta Speech School, and a board member for Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta. Moreover, he acts as a trustee for the Georgia Forestry Foundation.
The MLK Freedom Breakfast is sponsored jointly by UGA, the Athens-Clarke County Unified Government, and the Clarke County School District. The event honors the legacy of the late civil rights leader, and recognizes members of the Athens and UGA communities who carry on King’s lasting dream.
