ARCHIBALD CHALLENGES STUDENTS TO PLAY STRONG ROLE IN COMMUNITY

LUMBERTON -- Fayetteville Patriots Coach Nate "Tiny" Archibald told Robeson
County students that size doesn't matter when it comes to making a
difference in the community.

"You are pioneers," he said. "You are going to go out to your respective
communities and schools and display leadership. So carry that ball even if
you feel you are not the biggest person."

About 200 students and teachers attended the first Teen Empowerment Summit
on Friday at the Holiday Inn in Lumberton. The two-day summit is designed
to address violence, substance abuse and tobacco use in schools. Its goal
is to educate students on how violence and substance abuse affect them and
their communities. The event, which ends today, was sponsored by the school
system's Safe and Drug Free Schools program. Eight students were selected
from each of the county's 18 middle and high schools. The students spent
Friday in workshops gathering information on issues facing today's teens.
They will take the information and develop a plan to be implemented in
their schools and communities.

Archibald, the keynote speaker for Friday's session, described the
teen-agers as messengers.

"Individuals are going to go back into their schools and they are going to
teach others, and that will affect them in a positive way," he said.
Mitchell Cox, an eighth-grade student at Littlefield Middle School, said he
was excited about sharing information with his fellow students.

"One way we can do it is by having some small classes," he said.

Stephanie Stutts believes the conference will benefit the county. Stutts is
a sophomore at South Robeson High School.

"I hope we can start programs to prevent drug abuse in the schools," she
said. "We can use it as a springboard for other projects."

Rita Locklear, the coordinator for the Safe and Drug Free Schools program,
said she hopes the summit will play a role in the system's efforts to
reduce drug use and violence in schools.

"If we can educate our students about these three issues, I feel it will
improve the schools," she said.

Students have been asked to make copies of photos and documents detailing
activities held in their school throughout the year. School officials will
review the information to determine whether the initiative was effective,
Locklear said. Students will fill out evaluations after the summit and at
the end of the school year.