Coastal Carolina University will host the Women's Health and Wellness Conference Oct. 25 and 26 on campus. The conference is designed to encourage women and men to explore the many facets of women's health and to learn new approaches for centering, nurturing, healing and renewing the self. The fee for the conference, which is open to men and women, is $50. After Oct. 15, the fee is $75.

A pre-conference institute, titled "Sustaining the Soul that Serves," will be held Thursday, Oct. 25 from 2 to 5 p.m., with registration in Wheelwright Auditorium. Keynote speaker is Marian David, director of Sustaining the Soul that Serves, a nonprofit organization which provides educational programs for emerging and seasoned service leaders. She has also worked with the Fetzer Institute and the Children's Defense Fund. David has more than 12 years of experience in public schools as a teacher and counselor.

On Friday, Oct. 26, from 9:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. participants may attend four different workshops while choosing from 16 topics, which include Counting on Calcium, Parenting Healthy Daughters, Treating Young Adults with Eating Disorders, and Health Concerns of African-American Women. Dr. Lori Arviso Alvord, associate dean of student and minority affairs at Dartmouth Medical School and a practicing surgeon, will deliver the keynote address at 4:30 p.m. in Wall Auditorium.

Coastal's Women's Advocacy Center provides support services and educational opportunities designed to heighten awareness and to challenge the campus community to be more proactive in its response to women and women's issues.

The conference is sponsored by Coastal's Women's Advocacy Center and co-sponsored by Conway Hospital and Mercy Hospice of Horry County.

For more information, contact Stacy Cretzmeyer, conference director and coordinator of the Women's Advocacy Center, at 349-2900.