Famous teacher Erin Gruwell speaks in Worcester
Lauren Eknoian
Issue date: 11/12/08 Section: Feature
In the grand ballroom of Tuckerman Hall on November 6, 2008, hundreds of people rose to their feet applauding and cheering wildly for guest speaker Erin Gruwell. Gruwell, who is famously known as the teacher portrayed by actress Hilary Swank in the movie Freedom Writers, stood in front of the room with her hand over her heart and mouthed "Thank you" to the crowd of supporters.
Gruwell was invited to speak at Tuckerman Hall in support of the night's theme that every person can make a difference. Gruwell shared her experience of becoming a teacher and transforming the lives of her students, who are now known as The Freedom Writers, by helping them see that their dreams and aspirations really mean something and are in close reach.
In 1993 at the young age of 23, after pursuing a degree as a lawyer, Gruwell decided that she wanted something different for her life. She got a job at Woodrow Wilson High School in Long Beach, California as an English teacher of 150 inner-city students.
"I had the lowest 150 students, the ones that nobody wanted," said Gruwell. I got the kids who just got out of Juvenile Hall, the kids who just got out of rehab for crystal meth or crack cocaine, the kids who had learning disabilities, diagnosed or not."
Gruwell had students in her class that had dealt with losing a parent, losing friends due to gang violence, and one student who sat in the back of the classroom with an ankle monitor around her foot and her parole officer standing ten feet behind her. Her students had no motivation to do well in school, no desire to learn, no hope for the future and nobody who was pushing them to do better. Gruwell thought, "How am I supposed to help them change?"
In her speech, Gruwell focused on two students who truly stood out to her from the group of 150. Darius and Maria were two students who grew up in terrible family situations and experienced tragedies that no 14-year-old should ever have to experience.
Darius was an African-American student in Gruwell's class who lost his father to AIDS and at the age of 14, had already buried two dozen of his friends due to gang violence. With all of these tragedies behind him at such a young age, Gruwell saw that his focus in life was to stay alive and not so much on reading and writing. He didn't care about school or what he was supposed to be learning; his main focus was to keep his life. Gruwell said, "He made it very clear that English class was not the solution to his problems."
Gruwell was invited to speak at Tuckerman Hall in support of the night's theme that every person can make a difference. Gruwell shared her experience of becoming a teacher and transforming the lives of her students, who are now known as The Freedom Writers, by helping them see that their dreams and aspirations really mean something and are in close reach.
In 1993 at the young age of 23, after pursuing a degree as a lawyer, Gruwell decided that she wanted something different for her life. She got a job at Woodrow Wilson High School in Long Beach, California as an English teacher of 150 inner-city students.
"I had the lowest 150 students, the ones that nobody wanted," said Gruwell. I got the kids who just got out of Juvenile Hall, the kids who just got out of rehab for crystal meth or crack cocaine, the kids who had learning disabilities, diagnosed or not."
Gruwell had students in her class that had dealt with losing a parent, losing friends due to gang violence, and one student who sat in the back of the classroom with an ankle monitor around her foot and her parole officer standing ten feet behind her. Her students had no motivation to do well in school, no desire to learn, no hope for the future and nobody who was pushing them to do better. Gruwell thought, "How am I supposed to help them change?"
In her speech, Gruwell focused on two students who truly stood out to her from the group of 150. Darius and Maria were two students who grew up in terrible family situations and experienced tragedies that no 14-year-old should ever have to experience.
Darius was an African-American student in Gruwell's class who lost his father to AIDS and at the age of 14, had already buried two dozen of his friends due to gang violence. With all of these tragedies behind him at such a young age, Gruwell saw that his focus in life was to stay alive and not so much on reading and writing. He didn't care about school or what he was supposed to be learning; his main focus was to keep his life. Gruwell said, "He made it very clear that English class was not the solution to his problems."
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