FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- For the ninth year, African-American students from around the state will converge in Little Rock to learn more about the teaching profession and what it takes to make it in college.

The University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, under the College of Education and Health Professions, is hosting the Ninth Annual African Americans: Future Educators of Arkansas (AAFEA) Conference Nov. 19-21 at the Holiday Inn-Airport in Little Rock.

Funded by the Walton Family Foundation, the yearly conference has grown to more than 300 students, and includes parents, chaperones, teachers, university faculty and community leaders. During the conference, students will attend a number of workshops, including sessions on financial aid, careers, succeeding in college and admission to college.

They also can compete in an African-American Quiz Bowl, oratorical contest or for a spot on the prestigious student panel of Who's Who Among AAFEA Conference Participants. About 15 students will be chosen for the panel - based on portfolios that they submit. The winners will receive an all-expense-paid weekend trip to Fayetteville with their parents to visit the UA campus for an in-depth teaching workshop and visits with faculty, admissions and financial aid representatives and current college students.

Herman Thomas, assistant superintendent for Arkadelphia schools and AAFEA advisory board member, will present the African-American history component, Celebration of the 35th Anniversary of Civil Rights March on Capitol Hill. His daughter, Traci, who attended the conference years ago as a student, will return again as a teacher to share her experience about what it takes to succeed in college.

Dr. Michael McFrazier of Prairie View A & M University will speak Thursday night. McFrazier completed his doctorate at the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville and coordinated the AAFEA Conference for three years.

Keynote speaker Cynthia Butler-Blucher, personnel administrator for the Jefferson Parish Public School System in Harvey, La., will speak Friday evening. Saturday, students will compete in the quiz bowl finals and the oratorical contest.

Students are competitively selected to attend the conference, based on an essay, resumé and letters of recommendation. Wanda Baskins, a teacher at the McClellan Community School in Little Rock, requires her students to write the essay and develop a resumé. But she thinks the portfolio requirement at the conference has helped most with her students’ self-esteem.

"When my students read what other professionals have to say about them upon review of their portfolios, it lets them know that if you master the skills, good things will happen," Baskins said.

Baskins, who has volunteered to work on the conference since its inception, sees it as a way for students to network with college representatives and other students who are looking at attending college.

William Stanton, a school counselor in Eudora, said the conference is a way to provide vision for his students. "Because we are in a remote part of the state, our students don’t have the same opportunities as they do elsewhere," said Stanton. "The conference gives them an idea of the wide range of job opportunities available in education. I would say we have a 95-percent rate of students who attend college after they attend this conference."

Mike Rodriguez, school counselor at Marianna High School and UA alum, agrees. Upon receiving his master’s degree in Fayetteville in 1972, he moved to the Delta to teach. "You can’t help but love the Delta, but what I don’t love is that our kids are at a disadvantage," he said. "We don’t have museums, capital or the other resources that other parts of the state can provide. It’s hard to measure the impact (of the conference), but a small difference for one person can mean a world of difference to another."

Karen Eley Sanders, conference coordinator and director of minority education at the U of A, thinks the mission of the conference is multi-faceted. "As the land-grant institution in Arkansas, we have a responsibility to encourage all high school students to get a higher education," said Sanders. "We feel our program at the U of A is unsurpassed in the development of future educators, but if this conference encourages these students to further their education anywhere, we know we’ve done our job."

Sanders, who is promoting the University’s efforts to broaden its diversity, is working hard to dispel the myth that Fayetteville is an unfriendly place for minority students. "The minority students at the U of A will tell you that it has more to offer than any university in the state, and their opportunities are greater as a result of being here," she said.

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For personal interviews, contact:

William Stanton, counselor, Eudora High School: (870) 355-2415

Wanda Baskins, teacher, McClellan Community School, Little Rock: (501) 570-4144

Mike Rodriguez, counselor, Lee Senior High School, Marianna: (870) 295-7169

Herman Thomas, assistant superintendent, Arkadelphia: (870) 246-556