Too Cool for School : A Memoir

Too Cool for School: A Memoir is the shocking, true story of how an innovative, free-thinking teacher was driven out of her job. Elizabeth Collins was a respected English teacher at a private high school. She loved her students and worked herself to the bone. Then, because Collins did not use her husbands last name, she was attacked for being a "too liberal influence." Collins became the unwitting victim of extreme conservatives who assailed her character, threatened her livelihood, and worse. Rather than lie down for this abuse, Collins fought back with her only weapon: words. Further vilified for daring to write about her teaching, Collins suffered heart trouble, lost her job, and found herself at the center of an internationally reported scandal. "Lauded as a "hero and a martyr" and decried as an "indoctrinator," Collins became both an inspirational and polarizing figure. TOO COOL FOR SCHOOL explains the kind of teacher Collins was and is, what she wrote, the stress she endured, and how she survived. When a teacher can be targeted for being open-minded, having social media skills, and sharing ideas about teaching, who is safe? This fascinating memoir is heartbreaking, deeply funny, uplifting, and terrifying-a must read for all teachers, students, parents, and anyone concerned with the state of American education today.