ISU Anderson Center to host film screening of ‘The Education of Shelby Knox’ on Nov. 3

The Anderson Gender Resource Center at Idaho State University, through a grant from the Department of Health and Welfare, is inviting the public to a free film screening, followed by a panel discussion on the topic of sex education in high schools.

The screening and discussion will be held Thursday, Nov. 3, at 7 p.m. in the Rendezvous Suites A,B,C on the ISU campus. The event is free and open to all.

"The Education of Shelby Knox" is a critically acclaimed documentary from 2005 about a young girl in conservative Lubbock, Texas, trying to come to terms with her southern Baptist upbringing in a town where sex education is limited to a strict abstinence only curriculum while teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection rates are among the highest in the nation.  

Today, Knox is a well-known public speaker and feminist activist. The film is her coming of age story and explains her passion for issues like comprehensive sex education, women's rights and LGBT-rights. It has received a number of awards, including Sundance Film Festival (Excellence in Cinematography, Documentary Category), Sonoma Valley Film Festival (Jury Prize), Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival (Jury Prize, Best Documentary) and Fresno Reel Pride Film Festival (Audience Award, Best Feature).

The panel discussing the film will also include Michelle Butterfield, a health education specialist and trainer with the Southeastern District Health Department who also teaches the reducing the risk curriculum at Blackfoot Independence High School. Rounding out the panel is Kelly Brannock, who is the head teacher at American Falls Academy. With firsthand experience from local high schools they will facilitate the discussion and share their outlooks on what sex education is, and should be, like. 

For questions or more information about the event, please contact the Anderson Center at 282-2805.

For more information on the film, visit http://shelbyknox.com/the-film.

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