HAMBURG, N.Y. – Hilbert College announces its eighth annual Hilbert Reads event featuring a presentation by Stephanie Land, author of “Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mother’s Will to Survive" on Thursday, October 15 at 6:30 p.m. via Zoom.
Land’s critically acclaimed memoir, which details her experiences as a domestic worker, draws attention to the systemic challenges that millions of low-income employees encounter while living on the margins of society. By describing her own experiences in this world, Land highlights the complexities, uncertainties, and dangers that millions of invisible and forgotten people confront in their daily lives. At the same time, her book documents a story of a parent who displays unflinching resilience and hope in her efforts to escape the poverty trap.
The Hilbert Reads event is part of the college’s First-Year Experience Program and is designed to give freshmen a common and integrative learning experience. To enhance their knowledge of the book’s themes and to explore its contemporary significance, students engage in cross-disciplinary dialogue in their Foundations Seminar classes and participate in a range of co-curricular programming. The conversations generated in these forums not only prepare students for their evening conversation with the author, they also encourage them to think more broadly about the contributions they can make to improve the social, political, and economic conditions in their communities.
By underscoring the value of critical reflection and civic engagement, the Hilbert Reads Program supports the Hilbert Blueprint, the college’s distinctive educational model that incorporates and applies the Catholic, Franciscan tradition’s commitment to holistic student development and community service.
Hilbert College, located in suburban Hamburg, N.Y., south of Buffalo, is a private four-year college founded in 1957 in the Catholic Franciscan tradition. With over 800 students, Hilbert is a dynamic Western New York college that offers career-focused majors, including one of the top criminal justice programs in the region, and more than 50 minors and concentrations. The college’s engaging, student-centered campus community offers numerous leadership, internship, and service learning opportunities from which students launch successful careers while making positive changes in their communities. The Hilbert Blueprint promotes a well-rounded student experience over four years – starting with the Foundations Seminar in the freshman year, followed by Sophomore Service, Junior Symposium, and culminating with the Senior Capstone. Hilbert has expanded its academic offerings with the college’s first graduate programs in criminal justice administration and public administration, including a track in health administration.