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Diane Ravitch

Education advocate Diane Ravitch will speak on “The Death and Life of the Great American School System” on Tuesday, April 1, at 7:30 p.m. in Hendricks Chapel as part of the University Lectures series.

This lecture is expected to attract a standing-room-only audience. Those planning to attend should register their name and the number in their party at lectures@syr.edu by March 25.

A research professor of education at New York University, Ravitch is internationally acclaimed for her expertise on past and present education. Her most recent book, “The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education” (Basic Books, 2011), makes the case that public education today is in peril.

Drawing on her more than 40 years of research and experience, Ravitch critiques today’s most popular ideas for restructuring schools, including privatization, standardized testing, punitive accountability and the multiplication of charter schools, and offers a prescription for improving American public schools. Her new book, “Reign of Error: The Hoax of the Privatization Movement and the Danger to America’s Public Schools,” will be released in September.

Ravitch was assistant secretary of education and counselor to Secretary of Education Lamar Alexander from 1991-93. In that role, she led the federal effort to promote the creation of voluntary state and national academic standards. A seasoned lecturer, she currently shares a blog, “Bridging Differences” with Deborah Meier, hosted by Education Week, and blogs for Politico.com and The Huffington Post.

The Office of University Lectures welcomes suggestions for future speakers. To recommend a speaker, or to obtain additional information about the University Lectures series, contact Esther Gray in the Office of Academic Affairs at 315-443-2941 or eegray@syr.edu. More information can be found at

The University Lectures 2014-15 season will be announced in May.