SLIPPERY ROCK — Poetry, documentaries, speakers, videos, theater and a host of other projects will focus Slippery Rock University’s attention on the contributions made by African Americans as part of its monthlong Black History Month celebration beginning Feb. 4.

The celebration is using the theme, “Remembering Our History … Building Our Future” and is part of the university’s 125th anniversary celebration.

SRU’s Office of Multicultural Development will host the kick-off event, a presentation of poetry and a video featuring the parallels of historical moments at SRU within black history, at 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, in the Smith Student Center Ballroom.

The SRU Women’s Center will feature six African American women per week throughout February with a Twitter poster campaign at “#Women Matter.”

“Viewers can then use that particular hashtag to get more information about each of the featured women,” said Jodi Solito, director of the Women’s Center.

The opening week includes a social media initiative featuring:

• Dorothy Height, an administrator, educator and civil rights and women’s rights activist, 40-year president of the National Council of Negro Women, 1994 recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the 2004 recipient of the Congressional Gold Medal

• Lena Horne, singer, entertainer and actor

• Marian Anderson, singer with the Metropolitan Opera

• Alice Ball, a chemist who developed an injectable oil extract as an effective treatment of leprosy

• Josephine Baker, entertainer, singer and dancer

• Maya Angelou, a poet and author of seven autobiographies, five books of essays and several books of poetry.

Jack Cole, a retired detective lieutenant with a 26-year career in the New Jersey State Police, will deliver two lectures Feb. 6 as part of the SRU history department’s “Racial Justice Series.” The first, “You be the Judge,” is at 12:30 p.m. in 105 Vincent Science Center, followed by “War on Drugs,” at 6 p.m. in 320 Smith Student Center.

“Pink Goes Red” at noon, Feb. 6 and 7, is a joint effort with the American Heart Association and Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority offering information about heart disease.

The SGA Movie Series at 4 p.m. Feb. 7 and 8 p.m. Feb. 7-9 will feature the film “Lee Daniels’ The Butler,” detailing the life of 30-year White House butler Eugene Allen.

The SRU Chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People will host an “Open Your Mind” discussion about first-generation college students and the emphasis on education in the black community at 5 p.m. Feb. 10 in the student center.

Phi Beta Sigma fraternity will host an “AIDS Awareness in the Black Community” information table at 12:30 p.m. Feb. 11 and Feb. 13 in the Smith Student Center Lobby.

The social effects and current day politics surrounding black hair will be the discussion topic at 6 p.m. Feb. 12 in 320 of the Smith Student Center sponsored by SRU’s Black Action Society.

“Black? Fits the Description,” an education program about racial profiling and police brutality, is planned for 5 p.m. Feb. 13 in the Student Center sponsored by the campus chapter of NAACP.

“Ready for Love: Open Mic Night,” featuring poetry, spoken word and musical acts, is planned for 6:30 p.m. Feb. 17 in the Alumni House.

Phi Beta Sigma fraternity will return the focus to health issues with “End the Dread: Stop the Spread,” an education program about the effects of HIV/AIDS on the African-American community at 7 p.m. Feb. 18 in the Smith Student Center Theater.

African Caribbean and Columbian dance will be part of “Dance Infusions” at 6 p.m. Feb. 19 in the Smith Student Center Ballroom sponsored by the Student Union for Multicultural Affairs.

Playwright Katori Hall’s “The Mountaintop” will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 19-21 in the Sheehy Theatre of the Maltby Center by the SRU theater department. The Olivier Award-winning play fictionalizes the final hours of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life.

Chef Michael Twitty, culinary historian of African and African-American food, will be the guest chef at 12:30 p.m. Feb. 20 in Boozel Dining Hall where he will prepare specialty dishes at the Fusion Station. Twitty will then join a 2:30 p.m., question-and-answer session in the Smith Student Center Theater.

The second annual Rock the Runway program, showcasing local designers and fashion, will be at 7 p.m. Feb. 21 in the Smith Student Center Ballroom hosted by Student Engaged in Living Fashion.

The month’s culminating events are the traditional, semi-formal Ebony Ball at 6 p.m. Feb. 27 in the Smith Student Center Theater sponsored by the Black Action Society.