The Freedom Writers teacher still is working to recruit teachers and make education relevant

Last update: March 25, 2007 - 3:57 PM

Gruwell's mission has become her life
The Freedom Writers teacher still is working to recruit teachers and
make education relevant -- with lots of help from her students.

By , Star Tribune


Erin Gruwell's first teaching assignment was at Woodrow Wilson High
School in Long Beach, Calif., in 1994, shortly after riots shook the
city and heightened racial tensions.
School administrators had written off the students in Room 203, many
of whom were no strangers to gangs, drugs and violence. None of them
cared what Gruwell had to say.

But that would change.

Inspired by the diaries of Anne Frank and Zlata Filipovic -- a girl
who grew up in war-torn Sarajevo and who visited the class -- Gruwell
asked her students to write journals about problems they faced,
including abuse, racial hostility and anorexia. She challenged them to
rethink stereotypes. As a result, they opened up to one another and
did things that few thought them capable of -- graduating from high
school, publishing a book and, in some cases, going on to college.

The students dubbed themselves the "Freedom Writers" in reference to
the Freedom Riders who fought segregation during the civil rights
movement. In 1997, the students and Gruwell started the Freedom
Writers Foundation to promote an educational philosophy that honors
diversity. Schools nationwide are implementing Gruwell's teaching
methods to help troubled teens turn their lives around. A movie titled
"Freedom Writers" was released in January. Starring Hilary Swank as
Gruwell, it brought national attention to the group's mission.

Gruwell will speak in Minneapolis on Wednesday as part of the Star
Tribune Women's Lecture Series.

Q What were you thinking when you walked into the classroom on the
first day?

A It was just a really tumultuous time in Los Angeles; there had been
over 100 murders recently in Long Beach. There was a lot of racial
tension and it was really difficult and different from my suburban
childhood. I think [the students and I] eventually realized that to
have a good future you have to be a good student.

Q What do you think it was that motivated the students most?

A The writing. I tried to teach them a lot about tolerance, and in
order to have them really understand the importance of acceptance, I
used extreme examples of intolerance, such as the Holocaust and what
was happening in Bosnia or Cambodia. They really were able to bring
those subjects to life, through writing, through reading and by
writing their own parallel stories. Also, seeing a little girl from
Sarajevo who was so humble and taken aback when we treated her like a
movie star when all she had done was chronicle all of her stories. ...
We were able to capture a moment in time, stories that were universal
to so many people.

Q Are you still in contact with any of the Freedom Writers?

A I have an incredible relationship with them. We work together on
creating scholarships, which is really exciting. We're working on
training teachers and also on a documentary.

Q What is the philosophy behind the Freedom Writer Method?

A The main idea is to try to show teachers what I did in Room 203.
It's a three-step process. First, how do you engage students in the
classroom? By engaging them, you are making the education system
really relevant. Second, how do you enlighten them with the
curriculum? Make education come to life? Be relevant to what they
know? And thirdly, once they are engaged, how do you empower them to
continue making education and those lessons a part of who they are? So
you are not just teaching to test; you are teaching each and every kid
individually and making them feel that learning is a lifelong
journey.

Q What did you think about the idea of the movie, and how true to life
was it?

A The woman who produced an ABC "Primetime Live" special on us [which
aired in 1998] spent three months with us, trying to capture these
incredible, emotional stories. And her husband worked on the film
"Erin Brockovich." We were very lucky to meet all those people, the
producers, the screenwriter. We very genuinely created a relationship
with them, where our access to the film was unprecedented. We got a
say in the casting -- in fact, Hilary Swank was my first choice --
some of the Freedom Writers got cameos, and we were able to give a lot
of feedback throughout the shooting. I think the film is very honest
and moving.

Q What are you doing now?

A I work seven days a week, sometimes 20-hour days, really trying to
propagate the Freedom Writers; it is a cause. We do speeches and try
to recruit teachers and make these philosophies come to life. I'm
reminded of something Gandhi once said: My life is my message. And I
feel it has really become my life. Since meeting the Freedom Writers,
everything about my life is about hope and second chances for kids.


Cati Vanden Breul is a University of Minnesota journalism student on
assignment for the Star Tribune.

.