UNIVERSITY NEWS - JANUARY 2004

MEDIA CONTACT: Randy Goin, Jr.
954-762-5275, rgoin@fau.edu

FAU Hosts Workshop on Gullah/Geechee Nation

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL (January 26, 2004) - Florida Atlantic University's Center for Urban Redevelopment and Education (CURE) will host a lecture and workshop on Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation Heritage Preservation. The event, which is free and open to the public, will be Monday, February 2 from 3:30 - 5:30 p.m. at FAU's Reubin O'D. Askew Tower, room 724, located at 220 SE Second Avenue, Fort Lauderdale.

The Gullah/Geechee people are a distinctive group of African Americans who are descendants of enslaved Africans from West Africa. Gullah communities still exist, stretching from North Carolina to Florida.

CURE collaborates with non-profit, governmental and civic organizations to improve the quality of life in low- and moderate-income communities in the region through programs such as microbusiness training, computer training, nonprofit management, grant writing and home buying, along with community visioning and consensus building exercises.

"Our goal is to empower communities one resident at a time," said Ralph B. Johnson, CURE director. "We have to look beyond just the technical needs of a community to recognize the less tangible aspects that give a neighborhood its sense of place. Only then can we empower the community both economically and culturally."

For more information, call 954-762-5270.
- FAU -