Dr. Jerry Armor
ATHENS – As part of Athens State University’s Criminal Justice Symposium, retired professor Dr. Jerry Armor will speak about his latest book, A Home for Wayward Boys. The event will be held on Wednesday, April 22 at 4:15 p.m. in the Chapel of Founders Hall on the Athens State campus. It is a free event and open to the public.
Armor’s book is a new work of history telling the fascinating story of the founding in 1900 of the Alabama Boys’ Industrial School. It is also the remarkable tale of a nineteenth century woman, Elizabeth Johnston, determined to find a better solution than incarcerating young boys with adult offenders. As she walked among the convicts in an Alabama prison mining camp, she was stunned to see teenage boys working alongside hardened criminals. As a result of that disturbing experience, she vowed to remove youngsters from such wretched conditions by establishing a home for wayward boys.
A Home for Wayward Boys is the inspiring story of the school, its leaders, and the youngsters who lived there. In the words of Sue Bell Cobb, former Alabama Chief Justice, it also “ensures that we do not forget Alabama’s first lobbyist for needy children and her lifetime commitment to them.”
Armor served seven years as a juvenile probation officer, two years as the psychologist in one of the state’s prisons, and taught at the collegiate level for 30 years. He earned a BA, MA, and PhD from, respectively, Samford University, Troy University, and the University of Alabama.
Armor has written extensively for both academic and general interest publications. He was a Criminal Justice faculty member at Athens State University and is currently retired.
For more information about this event or the Criminal Justice Program at Athens State University please call 256-233-6515.
MEDIA RELEASE/ATHENS STATE UNIVERSITY/ GUY MCCLURE
