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Phoenix, Arizona - Elizabeth Anderson calls “LOTUS Life Skills,” the empowerment course for at-risk youth that she is running a Kickstarter campaign to fund, the culmination of her life’s work as a teacher and personal empowerment coach. “I want to show struggling teens that they can survive and thrive, no matter what challenges are put before them,” she said. The program, which will include a textbook and workbook, workshops for students, professional development seminars and training for staff and support materials, is designed to help students who face challenges such as abuse, addiction, mental illness, domestic violence, homelessness and poverty. Anderson is seeking $5,000 by April 8 to fund the program. “I have worked with students in drop out programs, refugee centers, migrant worker populations and students struggling with addiction and emotional and mental disorders,” she said. “Every single one of them was born innocent and beautiful, a life and self that’s unique in the universe. With the right personal empowerment skills, they can reclaim their personal autonomy and create the lives they want and deserve. The LOTUS Life Skills program is designed to help the students like these who are still struggling. There is a way out—a way to honor yourself and grow out of any tragedy or chaos.” The program gets its name from the Lotus flower, which grows out of mud. Like that flower, Anderson said, people are able to thrive in whatever circumstances they are in, as long as they have the right tools. The centerpiece of the program is a textbook called "Life of the Lotus." “I’m going to write it as a way to show teens who struggle with mental health, emotional issues, addiction, and other problems stemming from difficult life circumstances how to survive and thrive,” Anderson said. Anderson spent 15 years as a teacher, working with at-risk youth on reservations in North Dakota and in urban areas in Phoenix, Arizona. She has a BFA in creative writing and a MED in secondary education. After teaching, she spent three years working for a personal empowerment workshop. LOTUS Life Skills is a way to bring those experiences together and help young people. “The kind of personal empowerment experience I will bring to students is something that usually is only reserved for professionals who can afford thousands of dollars for a weekend workshop in leadership and empowerment skills,” she said. More information about Anderson’s work is available at www.lotuslearning.org , and more information about the Kickstarter campaign is available at www.kickstarter.com/projects/912667702/lotus-life-learning CONTACT: Elizabeth Anderson TEL: 701-460-6699 EMAIL: Elizabeth@lotuslearning.org
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