{"product_id":"goodbye-homeboy-how-my-students-drove-me-crazy-and-inspired-a-movement-9781948836005","title":"Goodbye Homeboy: How My Students Drove Me Crazy","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eOne sunny afternoon in 1982, a young businessman experienced a terrifying mugging in New York City that shook him to his core. \u003c\/b\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTortured by nightmares about the teens who roughed him up, Steve Mariotti sought counseling. When his therapist suggested that he face his fears, Mariotti closed his small import-export business and became a teacher at the city's most notorious public school--Boys and Girls High in Bed-Stuy.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAlthough his nightmares promptly ceased, Mariotti's out-of-control students rapidly drove him to despair.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOne day, Mariotti stepped out of the classroom so his students wouldn't see him cry. In a desperate move to save his job, he took off his watch and marched back in with an impromptu sales pitch for it. To his astonishment, his students were riveted. He was able to successfully lead a math lesson for the first time.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMariotti realized his students felt trapped in soul-crushing poverty. They saw zero connection between school and improving their lives. Whenever Mariotti connected their lessons to entrepreneurship, though, even his most disruptive students got excited about learning.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSchool administrators disapproved of Mariotti discussing money in the classroom, however. He was repeatedly fired before receiving one last-ditch assignment: an offsite program for special-ed students expelled from the public schools for violent crimes.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe success Mariotti had with these forgotten children—including coverage in the \u003ci\u003eDaily News\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eWorld News Tonight\u003c\/i\u003e—inspired him to found the nonprofit Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship to bring entrepreneurship education to low-income youth.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBy turns tragic and hilarious, \u003ci\u003eGoodbye Homeboy\u003c\/i\u003e shares Mariotti's flaws and missteps as he connects deeply with his troubled students, and woos the most influential people in the world into helping them—saving himself in the process.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eToday, Mariotti is widely recognized as the world's leading advocate for entrepreneurship education. More than one million young people from Chicago to China have graduated from NFTE programs, and NFTE counts Sean Combs, Chelsea Clinton, Diana Davis Spencer, and many more business, entertainment, and community leaders among its staunchest supporters.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAs \u003ci\u003eGoodbye Homeboy\u003c\/i\u003e powerfully illustrates, a spark of hope really can empower us to overcome life's greatest hardships.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrade Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"This is an important, compelling story. Readers interested in the reality of extreme poverty and violence will find it well written, terrifying, and finally uplifting.\"  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Blue Ink Review\u003c\/b\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"A story that combines Steve's depth of knowledge and experience as an entrepreneur with his exceptional humanity, and he brings his concepts and achievements to life in this personally charged memoir, a ‘novel' in essence that is rich in relating the lives of the street youths of New York as well as a fine sense of humor.\" \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003eSan Francisco Review of Books\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Steve Mariotti's moving memoir is a call to action for anyone who dares to dream, and dream big! Steve's entrepreneurial spirit led him from calming his contentious classroom and nurturing his students' ‘street smarts' to becoming the founder of a booming nonprofit. \u003ci\u003eGoodbye Homeboy \u003c\/i\u003epowerfully illustrates how Steve went from reaching one student to reaching millions with the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE).\"  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Erin Gruwell, teacher and author of \u003ci\u003eThe Freedom Writers Diary\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"\u003ci\u003eGoodbye Homeboy \u003c\/i\u003etruly captures Steve Mariotti's amazing journey as a teacher and an innovator. It's engaging, heartbreaking, hopeful, and ultimately triumphant. This is the story behind the entrepreneurship-education revolution!\"  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Jimmy \"Mac\" McNeal, founder of Bulldog Bikes Worldwide\u003c\/b\u003e   \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Steve Mariotti is one of the great teachers of our time. In this deeply personal memoir, he describes how a bunch of high-school dropouts in the South Bronx helped him discover the power of entrepreneurship education. \u003ci\u003eGoodbye Homeboy \u003c\/i\u003eis a page turner—once you open this book, you won't be able to put it down.\"  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Verne Harnish, author of \u003ci\u003eScaling Up \u003c\/i\u003eand founder of\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cb\u003eEntrepreneurs' Organization \u003c\/b\u003e   \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"I'm so inspired to finally read the inspiring, intense, and hilarious story behind the organization that helped me so much as a high schooler. NFTE taught me entrepreneurship skills that I still use to this day, as the CEO of a company that employs thousands and is transforming the real-estate industry.\"  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Robert Reffkin, founder and CEO of Compass\u003c\/b\u003e   \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"So many personal stories today are described as 'inspiring,' but \u003ci\u003eGoodbye Homeboy\u003c\/i\u003e is the rare true story that genuinely transcends the word. Steve Mariotti's memoir conveys the heart, soul, and determination that has catalyzed the lives of so many young people.\"  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Ray Chambers, World Health Organization Ambassador for Global Strategy\u003c\/b\u003e","brand":"BenBella Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50470359302487,"sku":"9781948836005","price":12.34,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9781948836005.jpg?v=1744898124","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/goodbye-homeboy-how-my-students-drove-me-crazy-and-inspired-a-movement-9781948836005","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}