Janis Kearney will present lecture, autograph books at ASU event

Jan. 27, 2005--In celebration of Black History Month, the offices of Diversity and Student Affairs will host Janis F. Kearney on the campus of Arkansas State University.  

Kearney, a native of the southeast Arkansas Delta, is a writer, lecturer, and oral historian who served as personal diarist to President William Jefferson Clinton, and was publisher of the award-winning Arkansas State Press newspaper, formerly owned by civil rights legend Daisy Gaston Bates.

Kearney’s recently published book, Cotton Field of Dreams: a Memoir, paints a vivid picture about the lessons children of cotton sharecroppers learned from under-educated but wise parents whose greatest gift was to encourage their children to dream.

Her story is about the miracle of the South, unwavering faith, and daring dreams of a poor, black family from Gould, Ark. Most recently, Cotton Field of Dreams has been nominated for Book of the Year Award by the African American Library Book Association.

Kearney’s lecture is scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 2, at 6:30 p.m. in the ASU Student Union Auditorium, located on the third floor. A book signing will follow the lecture in the Mockingbird Room, adjacent to the auditorium. Copies of Ms. Kearney’s book will be available for purchase at the book signing.

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