About St. Joseph Chapel and MLK Student Center · Baton Rouge, Louisiana
The Chapel of St. Joseph, also known as the Martin Luther King Jr. Catholic Student Center, is the Catholic campus ministry of Southern University and A&M College (SUBR), a historically Black university in Scotlandville, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Founded in 1969 and dedicated with a grand opening in spring 1970, it sits at 586 Harding Boulevard across from Bethune Hall and beside the Valdry Center. The Center belongs to the Diocese of Baton Rouge and is currently served by Jesuit Father Thomas Clark, SJ, who also serves as pastor of nearby Immaculate Conception Church. Its celebrated interior liturgical art by sculptor Frank Hayden and his colleague Van Chambers — including a 1970 monument to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. — makes the building one of the most distinctive Catholic student centers in the country.
- Established
- 1969
- Patron
- St. Joseph
- Rector
- Fr. Thomas Clark, SJ
- Diocese
- Diocese of Baton Rouge
Why belong here
St. Joseph Chapel is the spiritual home of Catholic students at Southern University — a place where Black Catholic identity, faith, and student life meet. Sunday and weekday Masses are celebrated in an intimate chapel filled with original Frank Hayden art, and the Center offers free printing, snacks, coffee, a TV, and a quiet place to study throughout the week. Whether you are a Southern Jaguar, an alumnus, or a neighbor in Scotlandville, you will find here a small, welcoming community rooted in the legacy of Father Enette and the Black Catholic tradition of Baton Rouge.
Mass times at St. Joseph Chapel and MLK Student Center
Weekly Mass schedule
History of the Martin Luther King Jr. Catholic Student Center
The Center grew out of Father Rawlin Enette's vision for a Catholic home at Southern University. Enette, a Josephite, arrived as campus chaplain in 1966 and spent three years convincing diocesan officials to build a chapel and student center on the wooded southern edge of the HBCU campus. Catholic students had been meeting in a courtroom of the law school; by spring 1970 the Newman Center — its original name — was dedicated, staffed by the Josephite Fathers who already served the Scotlandville Black Catholic community through Immaculate Conception parish. The building was renamed the Martin Luther King Jr. Catholic Student Center in 1984.
- 1966 — Father Rawlin Enette, SJ (Josephite) arrives at Southern as Catholic chaplain
- 1969 — Diocese of Baton Rouge builds the Center on donated campus land
- Spring 1970 — Grand opening; the Newman Center begins ministry
- c. 1982 — Father Enette departs after thirteen years
- 1984 — Building renamed the Martin Luther King Jr. Catholic Student Center
Father Rawlin Enette and the Civil-Rights Legacy
Father Enette was more than a chaplain: he was a national civil-rights figure. A graduate of St. Joseph Seminary in Washington, D.C., he marched with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in Washington (1963) and Montgomery (1965), then became a forceful voice for justice in Baton Rouge. He spoke at the Louisiana State Capitol rally following Dr. King's assassination and, after a 1969 police shooting incident, publicly warned the Baton Rouge city council that continued police brutality would push Black youth to take the law into their own hands. That same conviction shaped the Center: an ecumenical, Black-pride-affirming worship space deliberately built for young people at a Southern University roiled by student protest.
- Marched with Dr. King in Washington, D.C. (1963) and Montgomery, Alabama (1965)
- Spoke at Louisiana State Capitol rally after Dr. King's assassination
- Publicly confronted the Baton Rouge city council in 1969 about police brutality
Frank Hayden and the Liturgical Art of the Chapel
Baton Rouge sculptor Frank Hayden — best known as the physical-education researcher behind Title IX — was a devout Catholic and parishioner of Immaculate Conception. A friendship with Father Enette led him to create an extraordinary gallery of modernist liturgical art for the new Center. The signature work is his 1970 cast-stone monument to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., which Hayden described to a reporter as 'an unfolding or evolving organic structure which coils outward from the force of two massive hands seeking freedom and light,' with 'a quiet movement to it, like a blossoming flower paralleling Dr. King's feelings and sentiments of non-violence.' Together with his colleague Van Chambers, Hayden filled the building with 'lively pieces of liturgical art' that, in the words of the Frank Hayden Project, 'collectively create an interesting gallery of modern spiritual art.'
- 1970 monument to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (cast stone, exterior)
- Liturgical art by Frank Hayden and Van Chambers throughout the chapel
- Original altar cloth inscribed 'Dig your black self'
Ministries and Student Life
Beyond Mass and the sacraments, the Center functions as a hub of student life at Southern University. The doors are open for a quiet place to study, free printing, snacks, coffee, and TV. Students are invited to call Father Clark directly for pastoral needs, and the Center collaborates with ministers of other faiths in the Scotlandville neighborhood.
- Study and lounge space with free printing, snacks, coffee, and TV
- Bible Study (weekly)
- Rosary prayer group (weekly)
- Ecumenical and interfaith collaboration with Scotlandville clergy
Pastoral Care and the Jesuit Chaplaincy
Catholic chaplaincy at the Center is entrusted to the Society of Jesus, continuing a Black Catholic tradition begun by the Josephite Fathers in 1969. Father Thomas Clark, SJ — pastor of Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Scotlandville and the Diocese's principal Black Catholic ministry — walks the Southern campus, celebrates Mass, leads Bible Study, and guides students and parishioners in the 19th Annotation version of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius.
- Fr. Thomas Clark, SJ — Catholic chaplain (also pastor of Immaculate Conception)
- Mobile pastoral line: 225-773-2036
- Guides the 19th Annotation Spiritual Exercises
Relationship with Immaculate Conception Catholic Church
The MLK Student Center is closely linked to Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, the historic Black Catholic parish of Scotlandville. Father Enette served as associate pastor at Immaculate Conception while also building the Newman Center, and the Josephite Fathers ran both ministries from 1953 onward. The Jesuits assumed the Scotlandville ministry in 1981, and today the same Jesuit pastor — Fr. Thomas Clark, SJ — shepherds both the parish and the Center, giving students a direct path into the life of a 700-family Black Catholic community whose members are largely Southern University alumni.
- Immaculate Conception parish founded 1953 by the Josephite Fathers
- Jesuits assumed the Scotlandville ministry in 1981
- Immaculate Conception has roughly 700 registered families
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. Rawlin Enette (Josephite)1966 – c. 1982
Founding Catholic chaplain of the Newman Center; civil-rights activist who marched with Dr. King in 1963 (Washington, D.C.) and 1965 (Montgomery). Persuaded the Diocese to build the Center and nurtured it for roughly thirteen years before being reassigned.