This year, Millersville University has selected Enrique’s Journey, a true story based on the hardships of a Honduran teenager searching for his mother, as the University’s One Book, One Campus selection.
In the next couple of months, the University will be looking through a unique perspective of the experiences of illegal immigrants.
Due to the work of Dr. Caleb Corkery, English, and the 2011-2012 Millersville One Book, One Campus Committee, Sonia Nazario, Los Angeles Times reporter and author of Enrique’s Journey, will deliver a keynote address based on her research for the book. Her keynote speech will take place as part of the Understanding the Immigrant Experience Symposium: The Changing Face of our County and Country on September 19. Nazario, a Pulitzer Prize winner, will be on campus for two days: Monday, September 19, and Tuesday, September 20. Events will be held on and off campus to prepare for Nazario’s address.
Millersville University is partnering with Lancaster Public Library, the School District of Lancaster and the Lancaster Foundation for Educational Enrichment (LFEE) for Nazario’s program. The partnership will provide the area opportunities to come together and discuss the issues of immigration. During the Class of 2015’s Freshman Orientation in late August, students will speak about the book in small discussion groups. Likewise, high school students at McCaskey High School, who have been provided more than 250 books through a LFEE grant, will participate with Nazario in a student panel on September 19. There will also be a public discussion of Enrique’s Journey at the Lancaster Public Library.
“The book and these events will provide a foundation for understanding the immigrant experience, hopefully preparing us to better explore the many issues that extend from that experience,” said Corkery. In addition, a writing contest will be offered to all students at the University. Students will be asked to engage creatively with the themes of Enrique’s Journey while delving into their own past to get an idea of the trouble their own family members went through to get to America.
For more information, contact Corkery, the University’s One Book, One Campus committee chairman, at Caleb.Corkery@millersville.edu or 717-872-3655.