Alan Lawrence Sitomer

Alan Lawrence Sitomer is California's 2007 Teacher of the Year. In addition to being an inner-city high school English teacher and instructor at the Graduate School of Education at Loyola Marymount University, Sitomer is a nationally renowned speaker specializing in engaging reluctant readers. He received the 2004 award for Classroom Excellence from the Southern California Teachers of English and the 2003 Teacher of the Year honor from California Literacy. Other recent honors for Sitomer include being named Educator of the Year by Loyola Marymount University (2007) and Innovative Educator of the Year by the Insight Education Group (2008). Mr. Sitomer has also authored four young adult novels published by Disney that include The Hoopster, Hip-Hop High School, Homeboyz, and The Secret Story of Sonia Rodriguez. The American Library Association named Homeboyz a Top Ten Book of the Year 2008, giving it the prestigious ALA Quick Pick Recognition for young adult novels that best engage reluctant readers. Sitomer is also the author of Hip-Hop Poetry and the Classics, a text being used in classrooms across the United States to illuminate classic poetry through hip-hop in order to interest disengaged students in both poetry and academics. Learn more about Sitomer and tap into the host of free educational resources he provides at www.AlanSitomer.com