Kids Who Outwit Adults
Dr. John Seita is a former youth at risk who beat the odds. He was removed from his mother's home at the age of eight. Abused and neglected as a child, his journey though children's institutions and countless foster homes was a litany of degradation and humiliation. His unrestrained anger at his mother and at the system led to a childhood of anger and loneliness, one during which he fought with adults, counselors, teachers, house parents, childcare workers, and anyone else who crossed his path. <P>Today he is Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work at Michigan State University where he also has appointments with the MSU Extension/4-H and with the Michigan Agricultural Experimental Station. He is the author of Kids Who Outwit Adults (with Larry Brendtro); God Is in the Kitchen and Other Everyday Miracles; and In Whose Best Interest (with Martin Mitchell and Christi Tobin). He has written extensively in various journals on subjects related to youth development and program evaluation. <P>Prior to coming to Michigan State, Dr. Seita worked for five years as a program director for the W. K. Kellogg Foundation in Battle Creek, Michigan. He has also worked as a Research Associate and Adjunct Professor at Western Michigan University and has also been a youth worker in several treatment settings. <P>Dr. Seita attended Western Michigan University, earning his bachelorÂ’s degree in sociology, his masterÂ’s degree in educational leadership, and his doctorate of education in educational leadership. <P>Larry Brendtro, Ph.D., is President of Reclaiming Youth International, a nonprofit organization of networking professionals, policy leaders, and citizens concerned with troubled children. He holds a doctorate in education and psychology from the University of Michigan. He has been a youth worker, teacher, principal, and psychologist. For 14 years, he was the president of Starr Commonwealth. At the University of Illinois, he and Herb Quay developed programs for behavio