Crenshaw Student Authors Hit LA Times Book Fair

Young White House Fans are a Hit at the Book Fair

By Wendy Harris

| Tuesday, Apr 24, 2012 | Updated 8:46 PM PDT

Crenshaw Student Authors Hit LA Times Book Fair

Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Dr. John Deasy made a surprise visit to the Crenshaw High School Digital Media Team at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books this weekend.

The only LAUSD high school to participate in the weekend long festival, the teen authors invited Deasy to learn about their debut book, Journey to the White House: An Educational Blueprint for Change in Action.

Journey to the White House chronicles the Crenshaw HS group accepting a challenge from their technology teacher, Daphne Bradford.

She challenged them to become an example of what President Barack Obama’s "Blueprint for Change in Education" is supposed to look like inside an inner-city classroom.

The teen authors wrote about their "big dream" to meet and share their story with Obama.

After their teacher, Bradford, personally delivered student letters to Obama in 2010, the group was invited to tour the White House. But their request to meet Obama or the First Lady was denied.

During that visit, the students toured the First Lady's garden, met with the White House web team and Reggie Love, Obama’s former right-hand man. The Crenshaw Digital Media decied to chronicle their personally-historic trip.

People of all ages stopped by and made $25 donations to get their copy of Journey to the White House.