After going to local grammar and high schools, King
enrolled in Morehouse College in Atlanta in 1944. He wasn't
planning to enter the ministry, but then he met Dr. Benjamin
Mays, a scholar whose manner and bearing convinced him that
a religious career could be intellectually satisfying as
well. After receiving his bachelor's degree in 1948, King
attended Crozer Theological Seminary in Chester, Pa.,
winning the Plafker Award as the outstanding student of the
graduating class, and the J. Lewis Crozer Fellowship as
well. King completed the coursework for his doctorate in
1953, and was granted the degree two years later upon
completion of his dissertation.
Married by then, King returned South to become pastor
of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Ala.
Here, he made his first mark on the civil-rights movement,
by mobilizing the black community during a 382-day boycott
of the city's bus lines. King overcame arrest and other
violent harassment, including the bombing of his home.
Ultimately, the U.S. Supreme Court declared bus segregation
unconstitutional.
