WEST PLAINS, Mo. – Everyone is invited to attend a free, live-streaming presentation by best-selling author and former U.S. Army soldier Wes Moore at 7 p.m. Oct. 20 in Melton Hall Room 112 on the Missouri State University-West Plains campus.
Moore is the guest speaker at Missouri State University’s annual Fall Convocation in Springfield. He will discuss his book, The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates, which has been selected as the Common Reader this year at the Springfield campus. The book, which became an instant New York Times and Wall Street Journal best seller, tells a story that conveys the importance of individual decisions alongside community support. His presentation will be provided locally via interactive television (ITV).
Moore overcame academic and behavioral struggles early in life to graduate with honors from Valley Forge Military College and Johns Hopkins University. As a Rhodes Scholar, he completed an MLitt in International Relations from Oxford University in Great Britain. He served as a paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne Division of the U.S. Army and participated in a combat tour of duty in Afghanistan.
Today, Moore’s mission is to help young people succeed and make the right choices through education and awareness alongside the support of their parents, teachers and mentors. He is the founder and CEO of BridgeEdU, an innovative college platform that addresses the college completion and job placement crisis. BridgeEdU reinvents the freshman year in a way that engages students in real-world internships and service-learning opportunities in addition to core academic classes, according to information from convocation organizers.
Moore’s new book, The Work, released on Jan. 13, 2015, picks up where The Other Wes Moore left off and follows his journey to the point where he discovered meaning in his work through service. While detailing his own path to purpose, The Work also profiles a dozen other inspiring people who have found their mission by uplifting their communities.
Moore has been featured by USAToday, TIME Magazine, People Magazine, “Meet the Press,” “The Colbert Report,” “The View,” MSNBC and NPR, among many others. He also is a producer and has hosted programs such as “Beyond Belief” on the Oprah Winfrey Network and “American Graduate Day 2014” and “Coming Back with Wes Moore” on PBS, the latter of which focuses on the reintegration of veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
To learn more about this or other upcoming events, call the U/CP office at 417-255-7966 or visit the U/CP website.