Talking it up for the students

A student teacher writes about her college education in The State Press.

On the night before my first day of college, I lay awake in bed, my stomach twisting with anticipation and my eyes reading the popcorn constellations in my ceiling, looking for a sign of how the next day — and the next four years — would unfold.
My outfit was picked out and laying on the chair. My brand-new Toshiba laptop, my first laptop (rest in peace, old friend) and my high school graduation gift, was powered off and carefully tucked into my bag. My class schedule was printed, and my books, all purchased from the ASU Bookstore (a rookie mistake — always buy them used online), were neatly stacked on my nightstand. One of them was a copy of Emily Brontë's "Wuthering Heights," a required reading for my English 200 class. I wanted to be an English teacher after I graduated, and I had started reading the novel mid-way through the summer, but my diligence had tapered off because I couldn't understand why there were so many characters named Catherine.
It's been nearly four years since that night. I'm a student teacher at my alma mater high school, and I'm reading "Wuthering Heights," now a favorite of mine, with a senior Humanities class. The students might not have their Catherines straight yet, but they will.
I will graduate with a bachelor's degree in secondary English education in less than a month. [...]
My college experience has been invaluable. This is where I met my best friend. This is where I fell in love for the first time. This is where I had the chance to work with some of the most talented young journalists in my four-year tenure with The State Press. This is where I read the glorious masterpiece that is "Wuthering Heights" (I have to talk it up in case any of those senior Humanities students read this). This is where I learned how to be an educator, and I want to leave the door open for the students who will come after me. (Carly H. Blodgett)

Hinde Pomeraniec looks for the heroine of her generation's sentimental education in La Nación (Argentina).

Si sabe calcular la edad del otro con la mirada, posiblemente adivine que llegó a mi vida, a mis sueños y ambiciones femeninas en el final de mi escuela primaria, justo después de la historia de Jo y sus hermanas en Mujercitas o de Jane Eyre y Cumbres borrascosas.
Solita siempre se permitió mostrar en público debilidades, sufrimientos y hasta problemas económicos
Entre las novelas de Louise May Alcott o las de las hermanas Brontë y Rolando Rivas o Pobre diabla no hubo respiro para mi generación; pasábamos de la colección Robin Hood a los besos apasionados en primer plano como si la escuela de la vida y del amor estuviera signada por esas inevitables estaciones. (Translation)

And a columnist from The Topeka Capital-Journal writes in praise of her book club.

Witty, courageous, forgiving, generous, self-confident and inspirational, the 5:05 Book Club women embody the best qualities of powerful heroines in classic and modern day literature. Jane Eyre could learn a few tips from this ensemble. (Vicki Estes)

Stylist devotes an article to Charlotte Brontë.