Several Questions for a Novist (Home Page, Blog Features, & Footer)

I am working on updating my website – http://africanamericanatelier.org/wordpress_982685815/

I am having some difficulty adding content to the home page. How can I setup my home page to include a static three column grid with a description.

I’ve also tried adding a blog to the homepage, but I am unable to do so and keep the top slider.

How do you edit the footer in this theme? I’ve tried to create a 4 column grid similar to – http://www.formulatingdreams.com/aaa_wordpress_site/

but i have not had much success