The author of this year's Freshman Common Reader will present his ideas and personal story at a program open to the public on Tuesday, November 17, 2009, at 7:00 p.m. in Fisher Auditorium.
Bill Strickland, who penned Make the Impossible Possible, will also visit several IUP classrooms and tour facilities in the College of Fine Arts. Strickland is president and CEO, Manchester Bidwell Corporation and its subsidiaries, Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild, and Bidwell Training Center in Pittsburgh.
A reception and book signing session will follow the 7:00 lecture.
Make the Impossible Possible has been positively reviewed by many publications, including Publisher’s Weekly, which says: “It’s the American dream with a twist: for Strickland, it was never about shedding his past and getting ahead but about following his bliss and making a difference.”
According to Random House, the book's publisher, Strickland has transformed the lives of thousands of people. Working with corporations, community leaders, and schools, he and his staff strive to give disadvantaged kids and adults the opportunities and tools they need to envision and build a better, brighter future.
In its fourth year, the Common Freshman Reader program was established at IUP to set the tone for academic excellence by encouraging new students to read the same book. Each new student receives a copy of the chosen book and is invited to read it before the start of the school year.
