'Freedom Writer' Manny Scott to speak here

BONNERS FERRY — Celebrated public speaker, writer and educational consultant Manny Scott will speak in the Boundary County Middle School cafeteria Thursday, Jan. 22.

Scott was a student of Erin Gruwell, who was chronicled in the movie 2007 hit movie “Freedom Writers” starring Hilary Swank.

A free community dinner will be held from 5 to 6 p.m., then from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., Scott will deliver a free presentation for the community after spending the day working with students.

Scott’s presentation will focus on helping apathetic and at-risk students achieve the success that he himself was able to find.

He will spend the following day presenting to BCSD teachers about how to reach at-risk youth. Scott’s story is told in part in the hit movie and the book, “The Freedom Writer’s Diary.”

In room 203 at Woodrow Wilson High in Long Beach, Calif., one of the most amazing stories was created between a teacher and her class of students.

Gruwell had just earned her degree.

Her first job was teaching a classroom of students who were labeled “unteachable.” These students were exposed to violence, drugs, and alcohol first-hand.

She worked two extra jobs so she was able to pay for books for the children’s use, including “Schindler’s List,” Anne Frank’s story in “The Diary of a Young Girl,” “Zlata’s Diary,” and “Night.”

These books showed people during a hard time in their lives and how they managed to get out of it and survive.

Erin had the students make a journal about what they were feeling and experiencing in their lives. These journals were later made into a book and published as, “The Freedom Writers Diary — How a Teacher and 150 Teens Used Writing to Change Themselves and The World Around Them.”

These “unteachable” students worked hard to not only better themselves but better their communities. Each one of them graduated high school and went on to attend college.

Today, this book of journals is an inspiration that anyone is able to learn — they just have to have the motivation and the desire to want to.

Any teacher can impact a child’s life in a tremendous way and leave an impression on them for a lifetime.

In his journal, Manny began writing—and dreaming— about new, more fulfilling chapters in his life — chapters filled with healing, hope, perseverance, and possibility. Through very hard work, and with the help of others, Manny has achieved many of those dreams.

In 2007, he founded Ink International, an educational consulting team that is preventing thousands of suicides, raising student achievement, and improving teacher effectiveness. Through Ink’s online Professional Speaker Academy, Scott is training people how to survive and thrive as professional speakers.

He is the author of “How to R.E.A.C.H. Youth Today,” a book that shares several proven practices and principles that engage, equip, and empower people everywhere to reach those who seem unreachable.

He is a happily married father of three, a pilot, a doctorate degree student, and one of the nation’s most sought-after speakers.

Scott has energized over a million leaders, educators, volunteers, and students worldwide with his authentic, inspiring messages of hope.

Speaking to more than 125 groups a year for the past decade, he is the speaker of choice for conferences, conventions, schools, fundraisers, and banquets.

For more information, contact BCSD Curriculum Director Robin Merrifield at robin.merrifield@mail.bcsd101.com or call 267-7962.