Synopses & Reviews
After graduating from Yale University, Sarah Sentilles joined Teach for America and was assigned to a rundown elementary school in Compton, California. Through moving portraits of inspiring children, Sentilles relates a heartbreaking journey, as she learns about a failing school system, the true meaning of poverty in America, and the strength children exhibit when theyre just struggling to survive. Beautifully written, charged with love and indignation, Taught by America is a powerful tribute to the young lives Sentilles witnessed.
This is a poignant, touching memoir from a natural-born teacher. The education of Sarah Sentilles is something we can all learn from.” Geoffrey Canada, author of Fist, Stick, Knife, Gun and president of Harlem Childrens Zone, Inc.
Sentilles gives a stirring description of working in one of our poorest school systems . . . [A] profoundly moving book.” Library Journal (starred review)
Hauntingly eloquent, this memoir raises chilling questions about race, social privilege, failing schools, and the loss of innocence. Sentilless reflections on her students, their families, and the education they (dont) receive stays with you long after her story ends. This is a wakeup call that we as a nation cannot afford to ignore.” Janie Victoria Ward, author of The Skin Were In
Sarah Sentilles graduated from Yale University in 1995 and earned her masters in 2001 from Harvard Divinity School. She is currently working on her doctorate in theology. Sentilles lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts. This is her first book.
Synopsis
After graduating from Yale University, Sarah Sentilles joined the Teach for America program and began a two-year assignment as an elementary school teacher in Compton, California. Far from the hallowed halls of academe and the suburban streets where she grew up, in charge of thirty-six first graders in a classroom without books, Sentilles experienced her own kind of education. Taught by America is the story of the children Sentilles taught--but more than that, its a story of one womans change of heart and life.
Through moving portraits of inspiring children, Sentilles takes the reader with her on her heartbreaking journey, as she learns about a failing school system, the true meaning of poverty in America, and the strength children exhibit even when theyre struggling to survive. Sentilles originally joined Teach for America as a break between undergraduate and graduate school. What she didnt expect was that the children of Compton would change her utterly: instead of going on to graduate school in literature, she decided to study for the ministry.
Beautifully written, charged with love and indignation, Taught by America is a powerful tribute to the young lives Sentilles witnessed. She was transformed by what she saw in Compton; Taught by America will transform her readers as well.
Synopsis
After graduating from Yale University, Sarah Sentilles joined Teach for America and was assigned to a rundown elementary school in Compton, California. Through moving portraits of inspiring children, Sentilles relates a heartbreaking journey, as she learns about a failing school system, the true meaning of poverty in America, and the strength children exhibit when they're just struggling to survive. Beautifully written, charged with love and indignation, Taught by America is a powerful tribute to the young lives Sentilles witnessed.
About the Author
Sarah Sentilles graduated from Yale University in 1995 and earned her master's in 2001 from Harvard Divinity School. She is currently working on her doctorate in theology. Sentilles lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts. This is her first book.