Please note:The time of this event has been changed from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Prejudice and racism will be the topic when Jane Elliott speaks at Denison University at 8 p.m.(changed from 7 p.m.)on Tuesday (April 2) in Swasey Chapel. Elliott, a former teacher from Iowa, has committed herself to leading a fight against racial ignorance in society. This convocation, sponsored by the Denison Student Activities Council, is free and open to the public.

Elliott is famous for creating the "Blue Eyes, Brown Eyes" project in her third-grade classroom in all-white, all-Christian Riceville, Iowa, immediately after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. The sensitizing exercise labeled the participants either inferior or superior based on the color of their eyes. This has allowed many white people to experience the feeling of being discriminated against in the same way that society often discriminates against women, people of color, homosexuals and the disabled. "Painful as it is," Elliott says, "my exercise is not invasive. It forces people to think in new ways."

Elliott has conducted her exercise throughout the country for the past 30 years and today works with college students in hopes of influencing the next generation. She has been the center of much controversy and her work was featured in several documentaries including the Emmy award-winning "Eye of the Storm." Elliott has appeared on Oprah, The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson and a number of television specials including ABC's Person of the Week with Peter Jennings.

About Denison:

Denison University, founded in 1831, is an independent, residential liberal arts institution located in Granville, Ohio. A highly selective college enrolling 2,100 full-time undergraduate students from all 50 states and dozens of foreign countries, Denison is a place where innovative faculty and motivated students collaborate in rigorous scholarship, civic engagement and the cultivation of independent thinking.

For press inquiries:

Name

Barbara Stambaugh

Position Title

Director, Media Relations

Primary Email

stambaughb@denison.edu

Business Phone

(740) 587-8575