Teacher from "Freedom Writers" to speak at Upper Iowa University April 28
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Erin Gruwell |
FAYETTE, Iowa (April 1, 2011) — Erin Gruwell, president of the Freedom Writers Foundation, will speak at Upper Iowa University at 7 p.m. April 28 in the ballroom of the new UIU Student Center. Gruwell, who is known through her book and the movie based on her book, will discuss strategies for working with students placed at-risk.
As a teacher at Wilson High School in Long Beach, Calif., Gruwell was assigned a classroom of students who had been deemed “unteachable.” Gruwell worked to turn the students around by helping them examine their lives, rethink their decisions and rechart their future by keeping journals. Gruwell and her students published the journals as The Freedom Writers Diary, which became the basis of a movie in 2007. Today, the Freedom Writers Foundation promotes acceptance and innovative teaching methods in classrooms across the country.
“We know this speaker will not only inspire UIU students, but will be an inspiration to professional educators in our community, and, perhaps, encourage young people to consider teaching as a career,” Billie Cowley, UIU instructor in education, who is coordinating the Freedom Writers event on the UIU campus.
The Freedom Writers event has been made possible by a $20,000 grant from the Guernsey Foundation, Waterloo; a $2,500 grant from the Fayette Community Foundation; and a $2,500 grant from the Principal Foundation, Des Moines.”
Contact:
Monica Bayer Heaton
Executive Director of Communications and Marketing
Phone: 563-425-5773
Cell: 515-291-2070
heatonm@uiu.edu
About Upper Iowa University
Founded in 1857, Upper Iowa University is a private, not-for-profit university providing undergraduate and graduate degree programs and leadership development opportunities to nearly 6,800 students—nationally and internationally—at its Fayette campus and learning centers worldwide. Upper Iowa University is a recognized innovator in offering accredited, quality programs through flexible, multiple delivery systems, including online and independent study. For more information, visit www.uiu.edu.