News from SUNY Cortland

For more information contact: Jean Palmer, 607-753-2232

Public Education, Poverty Expert to Speak on Sept. 9 at SUNY Cortland

CORTLAND, NY (08/28/2008; 1154)(readMedia)-- Jonathan Kozol, an activist and author, will speak about the imbalances in public education, on Tuesday, Sept. 9, at SUNY Cortland.

Kozol is the founder of Education Action, a non-profit group dedicated to grassroots organizing of teachers across the country who wish to push back against federal No Child Left Behind regulations and want to help create a single, unified system of American public schools.

He will present "The Shame of the Nation: Deepening Resegregation and Persistent Inequality in Public Education in America" at 7:30 p.m. in the Corey Union Function Room.

The lecture is part of the College's yearlong series on the theme of "Inequality," organized by the College's Cultural and Intellectual Climate Committee. The series is free and open to the public.

Kozol has written many best-selling books including his first, Death at an Early Age: The Destruction of the Hearts and Minds of Negro Children in the Boston Public Schools (1967), where he drew upon his experiences as a fourth-grade teacher. The book received the National Book Award and has sold more than 2 million copies.

He is known for bringing attention to the tragic consequences of economic and educational inequalities in America. His efforts have challenged the nation to ask why, in a nation of unprecedented material prosperity, so many children continue to live in poverty with a sub-standard education.

In 1985, Kozol spent a year working in a homeless shelter resulting in Rachel and Her Children: Homeless Families in America (1988). The book gave voice to the people living in desperate poverty and illustrated the results with a portrayal of the death of an 8-month-old child.

His other books include Amazing Grace: The Lives of Children and the Conscience of a Nation (1995), which discusses a study about schoolchildren in the South Bronx, Ordinary Resurrections (2000) and Kozol's most recent work, Letter's to a Young Teacher (2007).

Kozol graduated summa cum laude from Harvard University with a degree in English literature.

"Inequality" is the fourth yearlong series of lectures and cultural events organized around a single theme at SUNY Cortland. Sponsored by the College's Cultural and Intellectual Climate Committee, the series is funded by the President's Office and the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs' Office.

For more information, contact Assistant Professor of History Kevin Sheets at (607) 753-2060.

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