News Release

BOISE STATE NEWS RELEASE/March 24, 2008

'Three Cups of Tea' Selected as Book for Boise State's First Year Read Program

An unforgettable adventure and inspiring true story of how one man really is changing the world, one school at a time, has been selected as the book for Boise State University’s First Year Read program.

The university’s new degree-seeking students will be asked to read “Three Cups of Tea” this summer and be prepared to discuss the book at various on-campus settings when they begin classes in the fall. Free copies of the book will be distributed to new students at summer orientation programs.

“‘Three Cups of Tea’ is a most compelling story that shows that one person can truly make a difference in the world,” said Michael Laliberte, Boise State vice president for student affairs. “We hope that introducing a story of this magnitude to our students will inspire them to find within themselves the ability to recognize that they, too, have the power to impact our global society.”

In its third year at Boise State, the First Year Read program is designed to encourage students to read beyond textbooks; raise awareness and tolerance of intergenerational and cultural likenesses and differences; promote academic discourse and critical thinking; provide an introduction to the expectations of higher education; integrate an academic and social experience into the campus community; and create a sense of community by increasing student-to-student and student-to-faculty interaction. It is coordinated by the Office of New Student and Family Programs.

“Three Cups of Tea” tells the story of Greg Mortenson, a great American hero who sold everything and lived in his car to make good on his promise to an impoverished Pakistani village to build a school for its children. In the process he has found himself playing a major role in one of the most historically and culturally pivotal areas in the world today.

In “Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time,” Mortenson and acclaimed journalist David Oliver Relin recount the unlikely journey that led Mortenson from a failed attempt to climb Pakistan’s K2, the world’s second-highest mountain, to successfully building schools in some of the most remote regions of Afghanistan and Pakistan. By replacing guns with pencils, rhetoric with reading, Mortenson combines his unique background with his intimate knowledge of the third-world to fight terrorism with books, not bombs, and successfully bring education and hope to remote villages in central Asia.

New students at Boise State will be engaged in discussions about “Three Cups of Tea” in several venues. Faculty and staff are encouraged to read the book as well, and to engage first-year students in discussions about it. Faculty members can receive a free copy by contacting the Office of the Provost. “Three Cups of Tea” is also available at the Boise State Bookstore at a discounted price of $15.

Boise State’s inaugural 2006-07 First Year Read featured the book “Mountains Beyond Mountains,” by Tracy Kidder, one of the most popular reads by first-year students on college campuses. It was followed in the 2007-08 academic year by “The Deep Dark,” Gregg Olsen’s account of the Kellogg, Idaho, Sunshine Mine disaster.

For more information on Boise State’s First Year Read, visit http://firstyearread.boisestate.edu.

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Contact: Sherry Squires, University Communications, (208) 426-1563, ssquires@boisestate.edu

Boise State University’s new Finish in Four program guarantees that eligible students who follow a planned course of study can complete their degree in four years. If not, Boise State will pay for the additional required courses. More information about Boise State’s graduation guarantee can be found at www.boisestate.edu/finish4.
 

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Last reviewed on Monday, March 24, 2008