AFFIRMATIVE ACTION OPPONENT VISITS SEMO

Affirmative action opponent Ward Connerly will speak Monday at Southeast Missouri State University.

Connerly will speak at 7 p.m. in Glenn Auditorium. A reception will follow the speech.

Both the speech and reception are free and open to the public.

"We are excited to have Ward Connerly come to campus," said Sarah Stephens, a member of the Conservative Club which is helping to sponsor the event.

"The ideas that he presents regarding affirmative action are ones that will begin the campus debate regarding this very important topic," she said.

Connerly chairs the American Civil Rights Institute, a national, not-for-profit organization aimed at educating the public about the problems created by racial and gender preferences.

Connerly, who is black, advocates equal opportunity for all Americans, regardless of race or sex.

As a member of the University of California Board of Regents, Connerly battled the on the university's race-based admissions policy.

On July 29, 1995, following Connerly's lead, a majority of the regents voted to end the university's use of race as a means of admission.

Connerly helped lead a successful petition effort to get the California Civil Rights Initiative on the November 1996 ballot. California voters passed Proposition 209 by a 54 to 46 percent margin. The measure bans race and gender preference in hiring and school admission.

Connerly's efforts have earned him a number of honors and awards.

He has been profiled on "60 Minutes" and in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and other publications. He has appeared on a number of television network news shows.

Connerly is president and chief executive officer of Connerly and Associates Inc., a housing and association management consulting firm that he and his wife, Ilene, founded in 1973.

Prior to starting his business, he worked for the state at the Department of Housing and Community Development, and the Assembly Housing Committee.

He currently serves on the board of the California Chamber of Commerce and is chairman of the California Governor's Foundation.

Sponsors of the event at Southeast, besides the Conservative Club, include the College Republicans, Young America's Foundation and KZIM Radio.