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PHILIPSBURG, St. Maarten - USM, Pond Island, As of November 2nd to the 4th, the 16th Annual International Conference on Caribbean Literature (ICCL) will have their meeting on St. Maarten. About 50 plus scholars from mainly the United States and throughout the Caribbean will attend this rather prestigious conference.

The theme this year will be “Ode to Saint Martin/Sint Maarten: Addressing the Longing to Belonging in a Multicultural Milieu.”

President of the University of St. Martin, Francio Guadeloupe welcomes the community of St. Martin to attend the conference at Sonesta Maho Beach Resort and Casino, and take part in the discussions. One has time to pre-register until Friday afternoon by sending an email to Mrs. Loretta Champion Johnson of Monroe University: lchampjohn@helmsbriscoe.com

The opening of the conference on the 2nd of November, which is free for all will begin at 7:00 p.m. at the USM campus. There will be an address by Dr. Melvin Rahming and Dr. Leah Creque of Morehouse University and a Keynote by Dr. Francio Guadeloupe, President of the University of St. Martin. There will also be entertainment in the form of performances of Young Carlix, The Protegé, and the local steel pan artist Lavern Vlaun.

On November 3rd and 4th, the ICCL conference continues with the academic lectures at the Sonesta Maho Beach Hotel & Casino, starting at 9:00 a.m. Both communities of St. Maarten and visitors to the island are urged to attend and join the activities and lectures about a most important topic: the relationship between Literature, Cultural Identity, and Belonging in a multicultural world. But there will be other related topics being presented and discussed.

For further information, please contact the ICCL representative: Mrs. Loretta Champion Johnson at lchampjohn@helmsbriscoe.com, or visit the campus of the University of St. Martin.

Through the duration of the ICCL conference, there are four keynote speakers, namely:

Dr. Francio Guadeloupe, Univ. of St. Martin, Nov. 2 at 7pm,

Dr. Rhoda Arrindell, Univ. of St. Martin, Nov. 2 at 12pm,

Dr. Chenzira Davis Kahina, Univ. of Virgin Islands, Nov. 3 at 12pm,

Dr. Ken Irish-Bramble, Medgar Evers College, Nov. 4 at 12pm.

Pre-registration price is $399 for full package of 3 days (*which includes an island tour); and $100 for 1 day.