the encouragement lounge: Inspirational summer reading

Monday, July 13, 2009

Inspirational summer reading

I just finished reading "Make the Impossible Possible" by Bill Strickland. This was one of those books that I didn't want to end. As many of you know, Bill Strickland is the founder and CEO of Bidwell Training Center and Manchester Craftsmen's Guild -- two organizations in Pittsburgh.

A preview of the book:

As president-CEO of Manchester Bidwell Corporation and its subsidiaries, Bill Strickland builds partnerships to help the disadvantaged build a better future. He's also the author of Make the Impossible Possible, which includes his story of how a kid from Pittsburgh's ghetto would go on to lecture at Harvard and serve on the National Endowment of the Arts board. The MacArthur Fellowship "genius" award winner is also founder of the Grammy-winning MCG Jazz, the most successful jazz subscription series in America.

Bill is an amazing person and his story is truly inspiring.

I know some of you are knee-deep in school work and if so, put this book on your after-I-graduate reading list. But if you are on summer break or are someone who likes to read something non-academic even while in school, I strongly recommend this one.

For more info on the book and on Bill's work:
http://www.bill-strickland.org/

Happy Monday!

Harriet

No comments:

Post a Comment

Working adult students, on my mind...

I hope this blog will be helpful to friends and others involved in a variety of endeavors. However, I created the blog with students in mind and continue to develop it with that specific group as my focus.

I believe that with the increase in evening, weekend, and low-residency programs, students are working more and more in isolation. If we were all full-time students on campus, we would have the informal support that comes with being able to go down the hall and talk with a colleague, etc. But instead, we are working late nights and weekends at home in front of the laptop.

With that in mind, I hope the encouragement lounge provides brief moments of respite and energizing connection. This does not at all replace valuable face-to-face contact. Many aspects of the academic journey can only be addressed via in-depth conversations with colleagues and teachers. And I would always rather sit down and talk with someone than to communicate online. Nonetheless, my aim is to give you one more channel for quick hits of support.