For more information, contact James Jolly, director of marketing and communications, at 843.383.8018

Hartsville, S.C. — Coker College is holding its seventh annual social work conference, “Steering the Path: Social Workers as Change Agents,” on Friday, October 13 from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. This year’s keynote speaker will be gang activist A.V. Strong, executive director of A Better Way/Project Gang Out, an at-risk youth organization based in Columbia, S.C. Conference attendees with state social work licenses can earn up to 5.5 re-licensure hours.

The conference will include sessions and workshops led by licensed professionals addressing a variety of topics, including social work in the South Carolina juvenile justice system, family therapy, foster youth issues, and social work in the United Kingdom.

Strong will speak at 9:30 a.m. in the Watson Theater of the Elizabeth Boatwright Coker Performing Arts Center. A former gang member, he grew up on the west coast where he witnessed numerous drive-by shootings and the murder of his younger brother. After high school Strong served in the military police while attending college at night. Following the Army, he joined the police force and began seeing signs of gang presence and activities in communities he patrolled. As a result, Strong founded A Better Way to provide an alternative to gangs by reducing the likelihood of  at-risk behavior adolescents while encouraging their maximum potential for success in life.

For more information about Coker College’s seventh annual work conference, or about Coker’s Bachelor of Social Work degree program, contact Darlene Sikes, assistant professor of social work, at 843-383-8015 or dsikes@coker.edu.

October 10 , 2006