The Catholic Home Alliance of North Georgia Educators (CHANGE), will hold its third annual North Georgia Catholic Homeschooling Conference on Friday-Saturday, April 17-18, at North Metro Tech, 5198 Ross Road, Acworth.

The theme of this year’s conference is “A Journey with St. Paul,” in honor of the Jubilee Year of St. Paul. The conference will offer Mass each day as well as speakers, vendors of Catholic materials and homeschooling curricula, representatives from Catholic colleges and universities, and an extensive used book and curriculum sale.

The conference attracts Catholic homeschooling parents and college-bound teens from throughout the Southeast.

Father Joseph Fessio, SJ, of Ave Maria University and Ignatius Press, back in Atlanta after a well-received 2006 engagement, will be giving two talks: “Walking in the Footsteps of St. Paul” and “Homeschooling and the Mass.”

Other speakers will address every aspect of the Catholic homeschooling journey from getting started to college preparation.

Father Jack Durkin, pastor of St. Monica Church in Duluth, will be speaking on how the virtues of St. Paul can help the homeschooling father, and Misty Spinelli, North Carolina Homeschooling Resource Center owner, will discuss “The Joy of Learning with Unit Studies.”

Also presenting talks will be national homeschooling leaders Carole Breslin, Ginny Seuffert and Fran Rutherford; Catholic apologists Bob and Cyndi Babecka; and homeschooling advisor Father Thomas Hennessy, pastor of St. Patrick Church, Norcross.

Conference vendors will provide a hands-on look at and the opportunity to purchase a wide variety of Catholic educational and enrichment materials.

Vendors include Seton Home Study, Sacred Heart Books, Bethlehem Books, Usborne Books, St. Margaret Mary Catholic Bookstore, The Chronicles of Xan, Hillside Education, Growing Scholars, Mater et magistra magazine, and Simon Peter Press.

Seton Home Study School is offering a $30-per-child discount to families who enroll at the conference.

The used book sale is intended to help both buyers and sellers to economize in these financially difficult times. Used book sellers are advised to register for the conference by April 3 in order to ensure adequate table space. Detailed instructions for the sale are available at the conference Web site, www.chsconferencega.com.

The conference begins on Friday with registration at 12:30 p.m. in building 100. A college fair, featuring Catholic colleges as well as select local institutions, will be presented concurrently with conference speakers from 9 a.m. until noon on Saturday, April 18.

Each college will offer a 15-minute presentation on its mission, admissions process and other topics, such as transcript and portfolio preparation, testing and financial aid.

Parents and prospective students will also have the opportunity to speak one-on-one with college representatives. Participating colleges include Belmont Abbey College, Belmont, N.C., Southern Catholic College, Dawsonville, John Paul the Great Catholic University, San Diego, Calif., and North Metro Tech.

Ticket options include a two-day ticket for one adult for $25 or a two-day married-couple ticket for $40. Children’s tickets are $5 and college-bound teens attend free with a paying adult. Participants can order Saturday bagged lunches in advance for $6.50, and other foods and drinks will be available for sale on both conference days.