Wayne State University and the Institute for the Study of the African American Child (ISAAC) to host round table on African American Education, Saturday, June 20, 2009 and associated Banquet dinner dance at the Marriott Hotel Renaissance Center on Friday, June 19, 2009.

A panel of nationally distinguished African American educators will present the Granholm and Obama Administrations with a plan to close the academic achievement gap that affects African American children.

WHAT:
A panel of nationally distinguished African American educators will provide the Granholm and Obama Administrations with a blueprint for closing the academic achievement gap that affects African American children. The learning styles and cultural heritage of African American children have been omitted from No Child Left Behind initiatives. Including culturally appropriate teaching strategies as well as cultural enrichment programs are the key to empowering African American children educationally and enabling them to take their rightful place of leadership in the world.

WHEN:
Saturday, June 20, 2009 - 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Registration 7 a.m.-8:30 a.m. Registration fee includes an executive continental breakfast and box lunch.

WHERE:
Wayne State University's Student Center Building, 5221 Gullen Mall, Detroit

MORE INFO:
Saturday speakers include: In the morning, Gloria Ladson-Billings, Kellner Family Professor in Urban Education, University of Wisconsin Madison, author of The Dreamkeepers: Successful Teachers of African American Children will serve as keynote speaker. Ladson-Billings, former president of the American Educational Research Association, will address the manner in which teachers can stave off special education placements, school dropout and low academic performance of African American children.

In the afternoon a panel will discuss pre-Brown and post-Brown historical events that have resulted in educational disadvantages for African American children. Panelists include:

• Godfrey Dillard, Esq., Lead Attorney Supreme Court University of Michigan Affirmative Action Case
• Brenda Priestly Jackson, Esq. Duval County, (Jacksonville) Florida School Board Member
• Robert E. Simmons, III, Assistant Professor, Eastern Michigan University
• James E. Young, Professor, Clark Atlanta University, Moderator

ISAAC strives to expand awareness and understanding of critical issues related to the achievement of African-American children by illuminating policy issues at the local, state and national levels. At this Round Table, ISAAC will unveil FIGHT, its public policy arm and the strategy to rectify the situation.

Soul Food Jazz Buffet featuring the Brandon Parker Trio following the Round Table in the Lobby of the McGregor Conference Center from 5 p.m.-7 p.m. Tickets and cash bar.

Associated Event:
Friday, June 19, 2009, Reception 7 p.m., Banquet, 7:30 p.m. at the Marriott Hotel, Renaissance Center: Na'im Akbar, named by Essence Magazine as "one of the world's preeminent psychologists and a pioneer in the development of an African-centered approach to modern psychology." He holds the doctoral degree in psychology from the University of Michigan, is the author of Chains and Images of Psychological Slavery; former president of the Association of Black Psychologists; former chair of the psychology department at Morehouse College; and current faculty member of Florida State University. He will serve as the keynote speaker followed by a dance with DJ Rick Love. There will be a VIP reception from 6-7:30 p.m. available to the public prior to the banquet.

For additional information and registration forms visit http://www.coe.wayne.edu:16080/ISAAC/, or contact Saundra Sumner at ac6642@wayne.edu or (313) 577-0991.

Wayne State University is a premier urban research university offering more than 350 academic programs through 13 schools and colleges to more than 31,000 students.