FOCIS at home and abroad
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| Vicente Fox |
On September 12, more than 1,000 people packed Wayne State’s Community Arts Auditorium and McGregor Memorial Conference Center to hear Vicente Fox, the outspoken former president of Mexico, discuss issues in globalization and immigration. Fox, one of the most charismatic figures in modern Mexican history, was the third guest speaker – and the first former head of state – in the university’s acclaimed Forum on Contemporary Issues in Society (FOCIS) lecture series. Prior to his lecture, Fox met with nearly 100 Wayne State students during a special seminar at the Detroit Institute of Arts and later signed copies of his book, Revolution of Hope: The Life, Faith and Dreams of a Mexican President.
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| Jonathan Kozol |
FOCIS also presented a special appearance by author, educator and activist Jonathan Kozol on Sept. 26. Kozol spoke on the topic of "Still Separate, Still Unequal: A Teacher’s Struggle to Transform our Public Schools." Kozol, whose published works have received the National Book Award, the Robert F. Kennedy Book Award and many others, is a passionate advocate of integrated public education and an outspoken critic of the voucher movement. One writer describes him as documenting the “continuing and often worsening segregation in public schools in the United States.”