Erin Gruwell quotes

I realized if you can change a classroom, you can change a community, and if you change enough communities you can change the world. (Erin Gruwell)

I have learned that, although I am a good teacher, I am a much better student, and I was blessed to learn valuable lessons from my students on a daily basis. They taught me the importance of teaching to a student - and not to a test.

Erin Gruwell

I grew up in a very progressive family and with a great educational system, and I asked myself, 'Why doesn't everybody have these opportunities for a good education? So why not give back to these kids who didn't grow up with the same privileges I had?'

Erin Gruwell

No matter what race we are, what ethnic background, sexual orientation, or what views we may have, we are all human. Unfortunately, not all humans see it that way.

Erin Gruwell

I believe that education is the greatest equalizer; thus, I will continue to fight to equalize the playing field in an educational atmosphere that is not always level!

Erin Gruwell

Society just doesn't care about young people anymore, even if we are the future.

Erin Gruwell

Evil prevails when good people do nothing.

Erin Gruwell

Writing really evokes empathy in a way very few things can do.

Erin Gruwell

Education is such a noble profession, its a wonderful way to serve.

Erin Gruwell

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that if you tell kids they're stupid--directly or indirectly--sooner or later they start to believe it.

Erin Gruwell

Don't let the actions of a few determine the way you feel about an entire group. Remember, not all German's were Nazis. (Erin Gruwell)

I am a teacher born and bred, and I believe in the advocacy of teachers. It's a calling. We want our students to feel impassioned and empowered.

Erin Gruwell

Hoping they'd been inspired by the examples of Anne Frank and other teens who had turned negative experiences into something positive by writing about them, I handed out notebooks for my students to journal about their lives. There was some initial resistance. But then the stories poured out of them, full of anger and sadness.

Erin Gruwell

I was going to show my kids that no matter what happened with their parents, parole officers and other teachers, I wouldn't give up on them. I let them know it matters to me that you come to class, it matters to me that you try, it matters to me when you succeed.

Erin Gruwell