Speaker Summary: Stephanie Land
By Emma Linn
The famous author of Maid and Class, Stephanie Land, came to speak to the first-year class on Wednesday, October 9, 2024. The event was held in the Schomburg Auditorium, where Land and Lisa Crumit-Hancock sat together on the stage. The freshman just finished reading her book Class, which is the sequel to her first book, Maid. Class was about Land’s journey as a single, lower-class mother who was also a student at the University of Montana.
The book highlighted how hard it is for people who are a part of the lower class to get help from the government. In one of the chapters, Land was cut off from food stamps because she could not work enough hours to qualify. This forced her to find a new way to pay for food for herself and her daughter Emilia. In addition to needing governmental benefits, Land also discussed her battles with child support, one she finally ended when she won the court case which raised her child support from her ex.
Along with the struggles of everyday life, Land also talked about her student life. She often struggled with her decision to go to school and earn her English degree. Land frequently faced harsh comments about her choices, such as attending school to earn her degree. Land talked to the students about the rude comments, how they made her feel, how she dealt with them, and finally, how she proved to those people that they were wrong. The author also wanted to prove to Emilia that she could achieve whatever she wanted, no matter her social status.
During the discussion, Land also talked about the next project that she was working on. She was the most excited about her next project because she could write how she wanted to with her ideas. Land said the next project will be a series of different essays combined into one writing. Her next project is scheduled to be released sometime next year. Defiance College and the first-year class wanted to thank Stephanie Land for coming to speak with them on Wednesday. The students enjoyed hosting the author and hearing her input on the other questions she was asked.
