CARBONDALE - Southern Illinois University Carbondale administrator Seymour Bryson has been appointed to the Illinois African-American Family Commission, a group the governor expanded last year to address black students' educational and family needs.

Gov. Rod Blagojevich selected Bryson, who is associate chancellor for diversity at SIUC, to sit on the 15-member commission. Bryson will serve one year.

The group's headquarters is in Chicago, but Bryson, who vowed to advocate for African-American families outside the state's metropolitan areas, is urging the next meeting to be in Carbondale. Bryson added he is "optimistic" he can make it happen.

Bryson has long been a proponent of improving education opportunities among black students locally. He

heads up the university's Center for Basic Skills, which sees a large number of African-American students. He considers his role on the state commission to extend his promotion of education.

"That is critical to all aspects of family life, and it underscores everything the commission has been asked to address," Bryson said. "We ought to make certain that kids get a good beginning and that educational opportunity remains open throughout their lives."

Bryson said many young black students are restricted in school, starting at a very early age. He said they are placed in special education programs disproportionately and continue in them throughout the remainder of school.

"They find it difficult to perform on standardized tests, it affects the quality of their experiences during their high school years and restricts opportunities to go on to higher education," Bryson said. "If you're in special education, you're limited to service occupations for the rest of your life."

The African-American Family Commission has been in existence since 1994, but its mission was expanded last August. The group collaborates with the state departments of Aging, Children and Family Services, Commerce and Economic Opportunity, Corrections, Human Services, Public Aid and Public Health. The commission meets quarterly and reports annually to the governor and general assembly.

African-Americans make up 15 percent of the 12 million people in Illinois.

SIUC Media Communications and Resources contributed to this report

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