Celebrity Chef and One-Time Adult Literacy Student to Appear at ProLiteracy Conference

Conference Speakers Announced

April 22, 2008
Syracuse, NY

Curtis Aikens, star of the Food Network and regular ABC Good Morning America cast member, will be the headline speaker at the Adult Learner Rights Rally that will close ProLiteracy’s annual conference, Saturday, Oct. 4, 2008 in Little Rock, AR.

Aikens also will be the keynote speaker at the lunch that closes the conference, which begins Wednesday evening, Oct. 1 at Little Rock’s Peabody Hotel.

Aikens didn’t learn to read until he was 26 years old and began working with local literacy programs affiliated with Laubach Literacy and Literacy Volunteers, Inc. Those programs merged in 2002 to create ProLiteracy Worldwide, Inc.

As a child, Aikens memorized what he heard in class; when taking tests, he would scribble illegible answers and then respond orally when teachers asked him to translate. People responded to Aikens’ likeable personality, and he was able to make it through high school and college with the help of friends; he even owned his own business. But he feared that his secret would become public, so when he saw a commercial for the Marin County Free Library Literacy Program, he enrolled and began to learn to read. Six years later, Aikens was a published author; he continues to donate a portion of his book royalties to adult literacy programs throughout the U.S.

Along with adult literacy students attending the conference, Aikens will lead close to 800 literacy program directors, teachers, trainers, and volunteer tutors and board members attending the ProLiteracy conference on a first-ever march from the Peabody Hotel through downtown Little Rock to the steps of the Old Statehouse building. There adult learners will unveil their rally platform and discuss action items. Following the rally, Aikens will deliver the keynote address at the lunch that closes the two-and-a-half days of workshops and presentations for adult learners and practitioners.

Other conference speakers include Arkansas native and President/CEO of Reading is Fundamental, Inc., Carol Hampton Rasco, who will open ProLiteracy's annual conference. Dr. Fitzgerald Hill will be the guest speaker at the conference banquet, Thursday, Oct. 2. Dr. Hill is the 13th president of Arkansas Baptist College, a decorated war hero, visiting scholar and research associate at the University of Central Florida's Institute of Diversity and Ethics, and a former collegiate head football coach. New This Year: Muralist Xavier Cortada will be creating a multi-panel, collaborative, movable mural that conferees will be part of throughout the 2008 Annual Conference. The finished product will be unveiled at the Student Rally, Oct. 4.

Conference Schedule:
Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2008, opening ceremony, 6:30 p.m.; Thursday and Friday, Oct. 2-3, 2008, workshops and presentations, 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.; Saturday, Oct. 4, 2008, student rally, 8:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.; workshops, 10:15 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.; closing lunch, 12:15 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.

For more information: ProLiteracy Conference Featured Speakers