UCLA Pritzker Center Presents Conversation with Andrea Elliott
Author of “Invisible Child” and UCLA Education scholars will discuss the child welfare system through Elliott’s Pulitzer Award-winning book.
The UCLA Pritzker Center and UCLA School of Education and Information Studies will co-host, “On-Campus with Andrea Elliott, Author of “Invisible Child,” on Monday, January 23, 11:30 a.m.- 2 p.m.
“Invisible Child,” which won Elliott the Pulitzer Prize in General Nonfiction in 2022, follows Dasani and her family as they navigate the child welfare system. It is an astonishing story about the power of resilience, the importance of family and the cost of inequality—told through the crucible of one remarkable girl.
“Through Dasani, “Invisible Child” makes visible the suffering and resilience of families experiencing poverty and the effects of systemic racism,” says Taylor Dudley, executive director of the UCLA Pritzker Center. “Ms. Elliott’s reporting urges us to truly look at these challenges head on with courage and a resolve to make right the wrongs of foster care. We are honored to host Ms. Elliott at UCLA.”
Elliott is a prize-winning author and journalist for The New York Times whose work has been received many honors, including two Pulitzer Prizes, a George Polk award, the J. Anthony Lukas Book Prize, and an Overseas Press Club award. “Invisible Child” was chosen by former president Barack Obama as a “Favorite Book of the Year,” and by The New York Times as one of the “Top 10 Books of 2021.”
A panel discussion will be moderated by Leslie Gilbert-Lurie, a lawyer, author, community leader, philanthropist, and former television executive. She is a founding board member and past Board Chair of the Alliance for Children's Rights, and previously served as the Vice Chair of the Los Angeles Blue Ribbon Commission on Child Welfare. For over a decade, Gilbert-Lurie served on the Los Angeles County Board of Education. In July 2022, she was appointed to the California State University Board of Trustees by Governor Gavin Newsom. She is also a member of the UCLA Foundation Board of Directors, and a member of the Board of Advisors to the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center and the UCLA School of Law.
Panelists include UCLA Wasserman Dean Tina Christie, UCLA Professor of Education Tyrone Howard, director of the UCLA Pritzker Center, and SEIS doctoral student Demontea Thompson.
A lunch and book signing will follow the discussion, and copies of “Invisible Child” will be available for purchase. Admission to this event is free; please register via Eventbrite.