The University of Arkansas at Little Rock Division of Student Affairs, Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, and Pulaski Technical College will host the African American Male Initiative Consortium Conference Thursday and Friday, Feb. 27-28, in the UALR Donaghey Student Center.

Several members of the UALR family will present at the conference – sharing their expertise in retention, leadership, and teaching students from diverse populations. All the following conference sessions will be held Friday, Feb. 28.

Register online at 2014 African American Male Initiative Consortium Conference Registration.

UALR students, faculty, and staff can register at AAMI Conference at UALR.

UALR Conference Highlights:

From There to Here: Navigating the University Culture
1:30 p.m. – DSC Meeting Room D

During one of the student track sessions, Dr. Michael R. Twyman, director of the UALR Institute on Race and Ethnicity and Dr. Joseph L. Jones, American Council on Education Fellow at UALR and executive director of the Social Justice Initiative at Philander Smith College, will team up to have a conversation with participants about leadership.

Their topic, “From There to Here: Navigating the University Culture,” will explore the challenges students face when trying to balance existing relationships and responsibilities while learning the expectations that come with their roles of becoming college-level scholars.

In addition to leading the charge of the Institute, Twyman has 25 years of experience in leadership in public and the philanthropic sectors.

He also oversaw a highly successful scholarship support program in Indiana for non-traditional and first generation college students.

Jones is a college professor and administrator at Philander and has won awards for his research and community service including the the Fannie Lou Hamer Community Service Award by the National Conference of Black Political Scientists.

Jones was also a 2010 fellow at the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research at Harvard University.

Twyman and Jones will draw on their years of experience to inform and motivate the young men on their own journey to becoming scholars and leaders.

Hey Teacher, Leave Those Kids Alone: Using Code-Switching to Increase Retention
1:30 p.m. – Leadership Lounge of the DSC

Dr. Sherry Rankins-Robertson, assistant professor in the Department of Rhetoric and Writing and the director of First Year Composition, will present to faculty. Her topic is “Hey Teacher, Leave Those Kids Alone:  Using Code-Switching to Increase Retention.”

Rankins-Robertson was a member of the cross-disciplinary team who launched the first ever Dr. Charles W. Donaldson Summer Bridge Academy last summer. Under her instruction in composition, by the end of the 3-week program, 11 students were eligible for honors composition and almost 80 percent bypassed developmental composition adding an average 18 points to their composition scores.

How To Handle Issues That Arise When Teaching Students From Diverse Populations
2:45 p.m. – DSC Meeting Room D

Continuing with the faculty track, Dr. John Kuykendall, associate professor in the Department of Educational Leadership, will moderate the faculty round-table discussion on the subject, “How To Handle Issues That Arise When Teaching Students From Diverse Populations.”

Some of Kuykendall’s research interests include college access for diverse populations, student involvement and retention, and pre-college experiences of high school students who want to pursue science, technology, engineering, and mathematics careers. In 2012, he and Dr. Shaun R. Harper of the University of Pennsylvania published “Institutional Efforts to Improve Black Male Student Achievement: A Standards-Based Approach,” which includes standards practiced by the Arkansas African American Male Initiative Consortium.

The Responsibility of Cabinet Level Leadership in Retaining and Graduating African American Males In Higher Education
2:45 p.m. – DSC Ledbetter Assembly Halls A & B

In Ledbetter Assembly Halls A and B of the DSC, Dr. Logan Hampton, vice provost for student affairs, will lead the administrator panel of vice chancellors and presidents.

The topic of the panel discussion is “The Responsibility of Cabinet Level Leadership in Retaining and Graduating African American Males In Higher Education.”

Hampton along with Dr. Charles Donaldson, Dean Darryl McGee, and Harvell Howard established the AAMI program at UALR in 2009.

Two special events planned:

Overground Railroad: Students to present African American history
7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 27 – DSC Ledbetter Hall

Students from the UALR Student Services Success Initiatives program will present the “Overground Railroad: A Time Travel Through Black History,” at approximately 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 27, following the opening address by Dr. Glen Jones, president of Henderson State University.

The UALR Institute on Race and Ethnicity has partnered with SSSI to bring this event to the campus and local community in order to celebrate Black History Month on both a state and national level. Learn more at Overground Railroad.

Dedication of the Charles W. Donaldson Student Services Center
11:50 a.m. Friday, Feb. 28 – Students Services Center

The Student Services Center will be dedicated and renamed in honor of Dr. Charles W. Donaldson, former vice chancellor of UALR’s Division of Educational, Student Services, and Student Life. The ceremony will be held in the newly named Charles W. Donaldson Student Services Center. Learn more…

See the full list of sessions at AAMI conference schedule. Register at 2014 AAMI Consortium Conference or For UALR only – 2014 AAMI Conference.

Contact Harvell Howard at 501.569.8713 or email hlhoward@ualr.edu for further information.