“Reading it, we learn so much about the power of writing, about teaching, about what education makes possible, and about the urgent human capacity to define who we are.”
Mike Rose, author of Back to School: Why Everyone Deserves a Second Chance at Education
Deborah Appleman is the Hollis L. Caswell Professor of Educational Studies and director of the Summer Writing Program at Carleton College. She also contributes to Carleton’s American Studies program. Professor Appleman’s recent research has focused on teaching college-level language and literature courses at the Minnesota Correctional Facility-Stillwater.
Her most recent book, Words No Bars Can Hold: Literacy Learning in Prison chronicles her teaching experiences in prison and argues for the importance of liberal arts education for the incarcerated.
Deborah Appleman is the Hollis L. Caswell Professor of Educational Studies and director of the Summer Writing Program at Carleton College. She also contributes to Carleton’s American Studies program. Professor Appleman’s recent research has focused on teaching college-level language and literature courses at the Minnesota Correctional Facility-Stillwater. Her most recent book, Words No Bars Can Hold: Literacy Learning in Prison chronicles her teaching experiences in prison and argues for the importance of liberal arts education for the incarcerated.
Professor Appleman taught high school English for nine years before receiving her doctorate from the University of Minnesota. She was also a visiting professor at Syracuse University and at the University of California, Berkeley. She works regularly with high school teachers and students, both nationally and internationally and is a frequent keynote speaker. Professor Appleman continues to teach creative writing and college level classes to the incarcerated. She is the author or co-author of more than a dozen books on literacy instruction, which can be found here.
Recent Blogs by Deborah Appleman
Knowledge is Truly Food for our Souls
Tonight was the first night of a new class, one that I am teaching with John Schmit, an English Professor at Augsburg College. It’s a sociolinguistics class called Language and Power. On this first night it all came flooding back why teaching here seems so important, why it is both exhilarating and devastating, why I
COVID-19 Got You Feeling Isolated? Here are 4 lessons learned from solitary confinement to get you through it
Greetings! The pandemic is deeply affecting all of us, but inside the prison walls, it’s particularly terrifying. I think constantly about my incarcerated students, worrying as cases are reported in different facilities. One of my former students Eli Darris, has written about shown lessons about isolation that he learned from being in prison. He has
Tony and the Blue Book
Tony is a tough guy. Real tough. For the life of me, I can’t imagine most of my students doing anything violent. They look innocent—young and fresh faced, and actually sweet. No kidding. Tony isn’t one of those guys. He looks mean. His eyes don’t smile, even when his mouth does. His hair is close-cropped,
Knowledge is Truly Food for our Souls
Tonight was the first night of a new class, one that I am teaching with John Schmit, an English Professor at Augsburg College. It’s a sociolinguistics class called Language and Power. On this first night it all came flooding back why teaching here seems so important, why it is both exhilarating and devastating, why I
COVID-19 Got You Feeling Isolated? Here are 4 lessons learned from solitary confinement to get you through it
Greetings! The pandemic is deeply affecting all of us, but inside the prison walls, it’s particularly terrifying. I think constantly about my incarcerated students, worrying as cases are reported in different facilities. One of my former students Eli Darris, has written about shown lessons about isolation that he learned from being in prison. He has
Listen to Deborah Appleman on Superior Reads
Professor Appleman taught high school English for nine years before receiving her doctorate from the University of Minnesota. She was also a visiting professor at Syracuse University and at the University of California, Berkeley. She works regularly with high school teachers and students, both nationally and internationally and is a frequent keynote speaker. Professor Appleman continues to teach creative writing and college level classes to the incarcerated. She is the author or co-author of more than a dozen books on literacy instruction, which can be found here.