Erin Gruwell

Educator, President of Freedom Writers Foundation

Erin is a top communication keynote speaker and collaborative writer for the best-selling The Freedom Writers Diary: How a Teacher and 150 Teens Used Writing to Change Themselves and the World Around Them. It became a feature film starring Academy Award winner Hilary Swank. By fostering an educational philosophy that valued and promoted diversity, Erin transformed her students’ lives. Her initial commitment to her 150 students, which included working three part-time jobs to fund student activities, ensured they would all graduate high school, most would graduate college and many would complete a post-graduate education.

Erin Gruwell Keynote Speaker Fee Fee range is for U.S. events, depending on location and organization type
Please Inquire
Languages Spoken
English
Travels From
California, USA

Erin Gruwell Keynote Speaker Fee Fee range is for U.S. events, depending on location and organization type
Please Inquire
Languages Spoken
English
Travels From
California, USA

Keynote Speaker Topics

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Suggested Keynote Speaker Programs

Nurturing the Leader Within

Filled with anecdotes from teachers across the country, Gruwell’s presentation proves that the methodology she has developed is not location-specific, but can be implemented in all types of schools and communities. In “Nurturing the Leader Within,” Erin explores ...

Filled with anecdotes from teachers across the country, Gruwell’s presentation proves that the methodology she has developed is not location-specific, but can be implemented in all types of schools and communities. In “Nurturing the Leader Within,” Erin explores her personal journey and her students’ transformations from disgruntled high school students to leaders and activists, illustrating that everyone has the power to embrace change and become a leader in their own community.

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Achieving the Impossible: Become a Catalyst for Change

Erin Gruwell found herself the teacher for a troubled group of students who had been dubbed “unteachable.” The tale of how this first-year teacher encouraged these wayward inner city kids to redirect their lives, forego rampant drugs and the violence that pervaded their ...

Erin Gruwell found herself the teacher for a troubled group of students who had been dubbed “unteachable.” The tale of how this first-year teacher encouraged these wayward inner city kids to redirect their lives, forego rampant drugs and the violence that pervaded their neighborhoods is the story recounted in the best-selling The Freedom Writers Diary. From the stark reality of one seemingly innocuous event in the classroom, she sparked a chord in the students that led the class to name themselves the “Freedom Writers.” Over the course of a few months, Gruwell empowered the class to re-chart their future and go on to become college students, published writers and citizens for change.

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About Keynote Speaker Erin Gruwell

Erin is a collaborative writer for the best-selling The Freedom Writers Diary: How a Teacher and 150 Teens Used Writing to Change Themselves and the World Around Them which became a feature film starring Academy Award winner Hilary Swank. By fostering an educational philosophy that valued and promoted diversity, Erin transformed her students’ lives. Her initial commitment to her 150 students, which included working three part-time jobs to fund student activities, ensured they would all graduate high school, most would graduate college and many would complete a post-graduate education. Erin currently serves as president of the Freedom Writers Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1997 that positively impacts communities by decreasing high school dropout rates through the enhancement of the Freedom Writers Method. Erin and her students have appeared on numerous television shows to discuss their experiences and promote improved educational reform. They have appeared on Oprah, The Rosie O’Donnell Show, Prime Time Live with Connie Chung, Barbara Walters’ The View, Good Morning America, and CSPAN’s Book TV. Her class has been featured on National Public Radio and in national newspapers and People magazine. She is also author of The Freedom Writers Diary Teacher’s Guide, comprised of innovative teaching techniques, Teach With Your Heart, a memoir and call to arms for educational reform and Teaching Hope: Stories from the Freedom Writers Teachers (2009).