The fourth annual Iowa State Conference on Race and Ethnicity focused on Asian Americans and brought the first Native American astronaut in space to Iowa State.

Wearing a bright blue NASA jumpsuit, John Herrington spoke to about 200 people Friday in the Sun Room of the Memorial Union about the importance of determination and teamwork in achieving goals.

Herrington told the audience about his rocky path to becoming an astronaut. He flunked out of college and struggled to obtain advanced positions in the U.S. Navy on the way to achieving his childhood goal.

“I applied twice for the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School. There was one person ahead of me, and I guess he didn’t apply a second time because I got the position,” Herrington said.

He stressed the important role mentors played in helping direct him toward his goals.

“Everyone has the opportunity to be a mentor,” Herrington said. “If people hadn’t [helped to guide me], I don’t know what I would be doing today.”

Herrington said his trip to space changed him spiritually. While in space looking down on Earth, Herrington said he could see how small the divisions between countries really were and he wondered, “Why is there so much turmoil on Earth?”

June Smith, ISCORE planning committee member, said she believed Herrington’s explanation of what he went through to accomplish his goals would provide an excellent role model for students. “[Herrington] was not a success story right from the start,” Smith said, “But he had a wake-up call and went on to fly in space.”

A group of 20 Native American students from the Meskwaki Settlement near Tama came to hear Herrington speak. They gathered in a circle near the podium and played a traditional friendship song on a large drum.

The proximity of Herrington’s visit to the space shuttle Columbia tragedy may have also drawn people to ISCORE, organizers said. “This year’s keynote luncheon was one of the best attended since ISCORE’s first year,” said Maura Flaschner, ISCORE planning committee member and an undeclared graduate student.

ISCORE lasted all day, beginning at 9 a.m. with the opening address by Eugenio Matibag, associate professor of foreign languages and literature, and Vicky Lio, senior in journalism and mass communication and a Government of the Student Body vice-presidential candidate.

Throughout the day, concurrent sessions ran on such topics as: “Working Toward the Elimination of Racism in the Classroom,” “First-generation Asian -Americans: This is Not My Homeland” and “The U.S. and the Third World: A New Empire?”

“I learned that everybody has a story,” said Joann Miller, business manager of continuing education and communication. “The panel I attended on first generation Asian-Americans was very eye-opening.”

Japannah Kellogg, ISCORE planning committee member, said he sees the purpose of ISCORE as a place to discuss race and ethnicity in a safe environment.

“It is not always a comfortable topic,” Kellogg said. “But we are seeing an evolution in ISCORE from mostly being students of color to including more and more mainstream students. We’ve made a conscious effort to recruit more mainstream students because we want them to see that they are a valuable part of the dialogue.”