34th Annual Conference on the Black Family
The Hampton University School of Liberal Arts will host the 34th Annual Conference on the Black Family on March 14-16, 2012. This year's theme, "Roots & Wings: The Road to the Future Runs Through the Past," will discuss the Black Family as a unit and how our respective communities need to learn from our historical past, acknowledge the challenges that we've overcome, to be where we are today. The conference will address challenges the Black Family continues to face - continued education disparity, health discrepancies, despondent financial health and awareness, as well as introduce other factors such as the arts as healing component. The conference will also address the many accomplishments achieved individually and collectively in the black community.
The opening ceremony will be held March 14 at 7 p.m. in Ogden Hall. On March 15, the conference will consist of sessions and panel discussions centered on the theme. The conference will conclude March 16 at noon with a luncheon in the Student Center Ballroom.
"There are still many prevalent issues that impact the black family; thus it is important that we connect to our roots to understand our past, celebrate the present and fly into the future," said Dr. Mamie Locke, Dean of the School of Liberal Arts.
This year, the conference will also incorporate the Department of English's annual Read-In Event. The selected Read-In book is "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks," by Rebecca Skloot. "Connecting the conference to the Annual Read-In is important to the theme in that there are many social, ethical, political, medical, race and class issues in the book that can become part of the overall discussion of 'roots and wings,'" said Locke.
The general conference Pre-registration fee is $35, $20 for Military and Senior Citizens. On-site is $50 for the general public and $25 for Military and Senior Citizens. The group rate is 4 for $100.00, per group, resulting in a savings of $40.00 per group. The luncheon only on Friday, March 16 is $25.00. The conference is free for HU students, faculty and staff. For more information or to register, contact the School of Liberal Arts by calling 757.727.5400, or by sending a message to libarts@hamptonu.edu.
