Black college students nationwide will travel to College Station this weekend to attend the annual Southwestern Black Student Leadership Conference (SBLC) hosted by Texas A&M and the Department of Multicultural Services.
"Students from schools ranging from Indiana University to Notre Dame, as well as numerous historically black colleges and universities will be in attendance at this year's conference," said Jetonne Butler, director of registration for the conference.
SBSLC, a student-run conference held every January at A&M, unites more than 1,000 students and advisers, Butler said.
Now in its 15th year, SBSLC attempts to encourage leaders to look to the future.
"(We want to) inspire and motivate the intellect of young black collegians to be productive leaders of tomorrow," said Anverly Black, director of the Advanced Leadership Institute for the conference.
The conference will consist of various workshops focusing on career planning, leadership skills, a career fair, a vendor fair and seminars with prominent keynote speakers Dr. Kervin J. Smith and Patricia Russell-McCloud, said Erika Kelly, assistant director of programs for the conference.
Kelly said Smith, who will speak Friday morning, is the founder and president of Kervin J. Smith Ministries, an international and multicultural ministry that spread its prophecy around the world.
Russell-McCloud, named by Black Enterprise magazine as one of the top five business motivators in America, was featured in the December 2002 publication of Ebony magazine and will be the speaker for the closing keynote address on Saturday, Kelly said.
Live performances by HBO's Def Poetry Jam and hip hop artist Amerie will be held throughout the event.
Registration will be open until Friday morning for students still wishing to participate in the conference. The cost is $35 each for a group of five students, or $50 for students registering alone.
SBSLC is still accepting applications for hosts and hostesses for the conference.
For more information on the SBSLC, go to http://sbslc.tamu.edu.
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