NATCHEZ — Never give up.

That message of perseverance resonated throughout the auditorium at Alcorn State University’s Natchez campus during the annual teen summit Saturday morning.

Dr. Pam Felder, ASU professor and coordinator of special education, gave the 186 teens in attendance a life lesson through a story of a boy who, despite finishing last place, got up after he fell three times during a race and achieved a true victory of perseverance. Felder said the students must never forget the story of the boy in the race as they journey down the road to success.

“The road to success is not a straight line,” she said. “Your pursuit of your diploma is not going to be easy, it is not going to be given to you. But all you have to do to win the race is rise each time you fall.”

Felder reminded the students of Malcolm X, Nelson Mandela, Maya Angelou, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and other men and women who overcame adversity to achieve great success. She also reminded the students that time would not stand still for them to seize the opportunity for greatness.

“There is a 59 on the clock of destiny, and you’ve got just one minute to run, run, run to your future,” she said. “Let me assure you of one thing: The molding of your future will rest in your hands and your hands alone.”

Felder asked the young men in attendance to take a stand and walk the path young men should walk.

“Let me tell you, my young men, it’s going to be difficult to win the race if your pants are sagging,” she said.

Felder told the young women to make sure “you’ve got it before you flaunt it.”

“What you’ve got to have is that diploma, because it is going to propel you higher to better things,” Felder said.

Felder’s final thought for the teens was that everybody is somebody and is worthy of praise for his or her contributions.

“My prayer for you is that you will stay with it, tough it out and do whatever is required of you to be excellent without excuse,” Felder said. “Get up and win the race. You were not meant for failure.”

Natchez High School students Darius McGruder, 16, and E’Keria Williams, 14, said Felder inspired and motivated them.

“Never give up, that’s what she said,” McGruder said. “She motivated me to not give up and to always keep going on with my life.”

Williams said she would always remember the story of the little boy who rose each time he fell.

“It’s a good story, and I will never forget that I have to get up and keep going every time I fall,” she said.

In addition to Felder’s presentation, the teens divided into groups for discussions led by local leaders. The topics of discussion included bullying, academic excellence, youth court, health issues, law for minors and self-esteem.

AKA Connection Committee Co-Chairwoman Brenda Jarvis said the summit’s overall theme this year was self confidence.

“We want to give them the tools to have a good self-image and self-confidence,” she said. “It went very well. The students asked a lot of questions and were very attentive.”

Morgantown Elementary student Gabrielle Jones, 11, and Robert Lewis Middle School student Curtis Brown, 15, said they crawled out of bed early Saturday to attend the summit for a unique learning experience outside of the classroom.

“I thought it would be a fun way to learn, and I have learned a lot, mainly when you fall down, you have to always get up,” Jones said.

The summit was sponsored by Alpha Kappa Alpha, Delta Sigma Theta and Zeta Phi Beta sororities, Alpha Phi Alpha, Omega Psi Phi, Phi Beta Sigma and Kappa Alpha Psi fraternities, Links, Incorporated and the Natchez Convention Center.