Southeast Missouri State University hopes to boost minority enrollment with the aid of an advisory commission.

The school also wants to recruit blacks for faculty and staff positions.

The commission was prompted by school officials' desire to reverse the continuing decline in black enrollment.

Southeast's president, Dr. Dale Nitzschke, has spent months setting up the 36-member President's Commission on Minority Affairs.

The commission includes Olympic athlete Jackie Joyner-Kersee, who grew up in East St. Louis, Ill., and state Sen. J.B. "Jet" Banks of St. Louis, an influential member of the Missouri Black Caucus.

Banks has come under scrutiny from the Missouri Ethics Commission over allegations that the senator didn't report all the campaign contributions he has received in violation of state law.

But Nitzschke said it was important for Southeast to include Banks on its advisory group.

"The Black Caucus in Missouri is a very influential group of legislators," he said.

"This is a state university and we have to deal with the state Legislature,' Nitzschke said.

Nitzschke said he chose Banks and others because he felt they could be helpful critics and supporters of the university.

A number of university officials serve on the commission.

Many of the members are from St. Louis. They include Patricia Washington, a member of Southeast's Board of Regents, and Daniel Williams Jr., a former regent who has served in various management positions with Anheuser-Busch for the past 18 years.

Nitzschke said he wanted to set up a commission to help the university market itself to minorities statewide.

He said the group will serve as "sort of a brain trust" on how best to recruit minority students, faculty and staff.

The commission includes two St. Louis area community college presidents. They could encourage students to transfer to Southeast to finish their schooling, Nitzschke said.

The commission will meet twice a year. The first meeting will be Sept. 25 in Cape Girardeau.

Black enrollment has fallen at Southeast in the past six years.

Southeast had 536 black undergraduates enrolled in the fall of 1991.

But this fall, the university expects less than 300 black undergraduates will be enrolled.

Blacks comprise 11 percent of Missouri's population. But at Southeast, they make up only 4 percent of the student body.

Many black students feel alienated and isolated on the predominantly white campus, a three-member delegation of black students told the Board of Regents last October.

The delegation said black students need a support system and role models.

Nitzschke said there are a number of reasons why Southeast should try to boost enrollment of blacks and other minorities.

One reason is financial. Nitzschke said Southeast is losing over $1 million a year in student fees because of the drop in enrollment of minority and international students.

Another reason is that blacks and other minorities are the fastest growing segment of the nation's population.

"In many areas, local governments are filled with minorities," Nitzschke said.

It is important to have educated minorities, he said.

Nitzschke said the nation still is wrestling with the centuries-old problem of racism.

He said minority students often feel uncomfortable and unwanted at predominantly white colleges and universities.

The university, he said, must do its part to create a friendly and supportive environment at Southeast for all students.

Derek Hudson of St. Louis is on the minority commission. Hudson, who is black, is a 1994 graduate of Southeast.

Hudson said he believes the commission members can serve as ambassadors for the university.

It's no accident that Nitzschke named a number of St. Louisans to the commission.

The university wants to recruit more students of all races from the St. Louis area. Southeast currently gets less than 1,000 students from St. Louis city and county combined.

PRESIDENT'S COMMISSION ON MINORITY AFFAIRS

Jackie Joyner-Kersee is a track and field star who grew up in East St. Louis, ill. She has won six Olymnpic medals, including three gold medals, and earned the title "World's Greatest Female Athlete."

J.B. "Jet" Banks is a state senator from St. Louis. He was elected to the Missouri House in 1968 and has served in the Senate since 1976.

Trent Ball is coordinator of the Office of Student Minority Affairs at Southeast.

Kimberly Barrett is the new dean of students at Southeast.

John Bass is a member of the Missouri Coordinating Board for Higher Education. he served in Congress and as a state senator.

I.C. Bates is the training and development managerr for Xerox of Mid-America, based in St. Louis.

The Rev. William Bird is pastor of the Greater Dimension Church of God in Christ in Cape Girardeau and is a member of the Cape Girardeau Board of Education.

The Rev. Ronald Bobo has pastored the West Wide Missionary Baptist Church in St. Louis since June 1986.

Danielle Carter is a graduate student at Southeast.Carrie Cline is a television reporter for KFVS-TV in Cape Girardeau.Erma Dot Coleman is site facilitator for the Central High School Caring Communities in Kansas City.Karla Cooper is the community liaison for the Kennett School District.Carol Daniel works for St. Louis radio station KMOX. She co-hosts the weekday afternoon news show and and the Saturday morning news broadcast.David Dumars has been an assistant football coach at Southeast since 1989.Frank Kennedy Ellis is principal of Washington Elementary School in Cape Girardeau.Nancy Gibson is plant technical systems network manager for the Procter & Gamble plant in Cape Girardeau County.Lester Gillespie is a cell technician at the Dana Corp. in Cape Girardeau.Derek Hudson works as area marketing manager for Southwest Airlines in St. Louis.The Rev. Samuel Hylton Jr. is a civil rights activist and retired St. Louis minister.Paul Keys is dean of the College of Health and Human Services at Southeast.Charles Kupchella is Southeast's provost.Irving McPhail is president of St. Louis Community College at Florissant Valley.Dr. William R.M. Ogle is a cardiovascular surgeon with the Cardiovascular Surgeons of Southeast Missouri.Verna Porter is the first black woman from Southeast to complete medical school.Henry Shannon is president of St. Louis Community College at Forest Park.

Jeff Shaw is a student and athlete at Southeast.

Michael Smith is director of the Urban League College Resource Center in St. Louis.

Juanita Spicer chairs the education committee of the Cape Girardeau chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Michael Sterling is presidnet of the Cape Girardeau NAACP.

SueAnn Strom is vice president of student affairs at Southeast.

Betty Thomas is founder and director of the Savoir Faire Programme "The Proper Way" Coed Finishing School in St. Louis.

Linda Keel Vogelsang has been a counselor in the Center for Health and Counseling at Southeast since 1987.

Patricia Washington is a member of Southeast's Board of Regents. She most recently worked as press secretary to former St. Louis mayor Freeman Bosley Jr.

Carol Weir of St. Louis is the Missouri state chapter president and the Council of Chapter Presidents chair-elect in the National Association of Social Workers.

Daniel Williams Jr. of St. Louis has served in various management positions with Anheuser-Busch for the past 18 yeras. He previously served on Southeast's Board of Regents.

J.J. Williamson is in the insurance business and serves on the Cape Girardeau City Council.