Susan Sparks will be honored with the Spirit Award at the Martin Luther King Jr. celebration planned Jan. 21 starting at noon at Columbia Basin College in Pasco.

Sparks has been the principal at Ruth Livingston Elementary School since 2000. During her tenure, her students have exceeded state averages and standardized testing scores, according to Saundra Hill, superintendent of the Pasco School District.

"Susan's vision, practical know-how and stable leadership are the reasons Livingston is successful," Hill said in a statement.

Sparks started her education career as a third-grade teacher at Livingston in 1982. She moved into the administrative end of education in 1999.

She also was named distinguished elementary school principal of the year for the Lake Wallula region of Washington School Principals and Elementary School Principals of Washington.

Other activities planned for the celebration will be a performance by the Federation of Choirs, a reading by Miss Juneteenth Patricia Anyango, and a keynote address by Duke Mitchell, the CBC board of trustee chairman.

Festivities center around the outdoor statue of King on the CBC campus.

Following the festivities, there will be activities for kids in the Byron Gjerde Center on campus. The event is free.