Driven to Succeed: An Inspirational Memoir of Lessons Learned Through Faith, Family and Favor

In her new inspirational memoir, Dr. Hattie N. Washington reveals how a country girl from the backwoods of Meherrin, Virginia succeeded through life with optimism, drive, and a belief in God to become an honor student, a master teacher, a parent to two accomplished daughters, and a foster parent to numerous abused foster boys over twenty-two years. She writes about family, relationships, and the complexities of growing up during the segregation and desegregation era, when the strike at R.R. Moton High School in Farmville, Virginia in 1951 led to the historic Brown v. Board of Education 1954 desegregation case. Her strong faith and high self-expectation shine through, especially when her two-room elementary schoolhouse in Prince Edward County, VA closed in 1959 due to Virginia’s massive resistance to the Brown v. Board of Education civil rights case. You will read about how an ongoing series of personal setbacks brought on many detours, yet she broke down barriers to complete her high school and college education; and made history by becoming the first female vice president of Coppin State University. She shares the long journey she had starting a non-profit boys’ home in Maryland for abused foster boys with special educational needs, named Aunt Hattie’s Place (AHP).She also discloses divine interventions and dark family secrets that overflow with wisdom, lessons learned, and a call to action. Her riveting memoir is complete with historical and personal photographs of her life’s journey that provide motivation for generations to come. ABOUT AUTHOR: Dr. Hattie N. Washington is nationally recognized for her work in the education, foster care, and non-profit arenas. For over 22 years, she served as a Professor (tenured) of Education and Special Education at Coppin State University (CSU) in Baltimore, MD; and for 8 of those 22 years, she was the Vice-President of Institutional Advancement and Executive Director of the CSU Development Foundation. She founded Aunt Hattie’s Place, Inc. (AHP), a non-profit residential facility for males with special educational needs, and for 22 years, simultaneously, reared numerous abused foster boys. She is affectionately known as “Aunt Hattie” by her foster boys, AHP’s staff, and volunteers. Their lives after AHP have proven to be fulfilling and on the right path.Dr. Washington’s education includes a BS Degree from Norfolk State University in Elementary Education with a Minor in Special Education; Master’s Degree from Ball State University (Athens, Greece Overseas Program) in Counseling Psychology; and a Ph.D. from University of Maryland, College Park in Curriculum and Instruction. She has done further postgraduate study at Glasgow University in Glasgow, Scotland, UK (Rotary International Fellowship) in Multiculturalism & Special Education Administration; Harvard University in Boston, MA in Executive Management; and Oxford University in London, England, UK in Higher Education Accountability. She has been a teacher for over 35 years (in the United States and abroad—Scotland & Greece), a local and state administrator, college professor, TV hostess, a civic & community leader, a national & international consultant and trainer, an active civic and community leader, and was the PTA President of her two daughters’ middle & high schools throughout their years in those grades. Today, her two daughters are a physician and an attorney, and she made history as the first female vice president of a university.Dr. Washington is the author of three books: “DRIVEN TO SUCCEED: An Inspirational Memoir of Lessons Learned Through Faith, Family and Favor”, “DETERMINADA A TRIUNFAR: Unas memorias inspiradoras de lecciones aprendidas a través de la fe, la familia y el favor” (Spanish Version), and “AUNT HATTIE’S COOKBOOK: Southern Comfort Food Favorites.” For more information, visit her website: www.drhnwashington.com or www.driven2succeed.com; email her at: hwashington0001@gmail.com or ahpkids@aol.com.

Dr. Hattie N. Washington is nationally recognized for her work in the education, foster care, and non-profit arenas. For over 22 years, she served as a Professor (tenured) of Education at Coppin State University (CSU) in Baltimore, Md; and for 8 of those 22 years, she was the Vice-President of Institutional Advancement and Executive Director of the CSU Development Foundation. She founded Aunt Hattie's Place, Inc. (AHP), a 501 (c)3 non-profit residential facility for males with special educational needs, and for 22 years, reared numerous abused foster boys. She is affectionately known as "Aunt Hattie" by her foster boys and AHP's staff. Their lives after AHP have proven to be fulfilling and on the right path. Dr. Washington's education includes a BS Degree in Elementary Education from Norfolk State University with a Minor in Special Education; Master's Degree from Ball State University (Athens, Greece Overseas Program) in Counseling Psychology; and a Doctorate from University of Maryland, College Park in Curriculum and Instruction. She has done further postgraduate study at Glasgow University in Glasgow, Scotland (Rotary International Scholarship) in Multiculturalism & Special Education Administration; Harvard University in Boston, MA in Executive Management; and Oxford University in London, England in Higher Education Accountability. She has been a teacher for over 35 years (in the United States and abroad-Scotland & Greece), a local and state administrator, TV Hostess, a national & international consultant, and trainer, an active civic and community leader, and was the PTA President of her two daughters' middle & high schools throughout their years in those grades. She is the mother of two accomplished daughters (a physician and an attorney) and a successful first foster son (an IT Specialist). Dr. Washington made history as the first female Vice President of Coppin State University, where she raised over $8 Million, instead of the given goal of $3 Million. Because of her love for teaching, she continued to teach one graduate course during her tenure as VP. Prior to VP, she was Assistant Superintendent of Baltimore City Public Schools, where the vision of Aunt Hattie's Place originated. Prior, she was Program Specialist for the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE), evaluating Superintendents across Maryland. Dr. Washington travels the State and country as a motivational speaker, a master teacher; a child development specialist; an educational consultant; and a systemic trainer and change-maker. She's the recipient of numerous awards, including, The 2018 Maryland Women's Commission Hall of Fame Award. Dr. Washington states, "My work with Aunt Hattie's Place, Baltimore City Schools, MSDE, and at Coppin State was my ministries and grew out of my childhood experiences and a need to "give back" and "pay it forward. Throughout my career, I sought to uplift the lives of our youth while focusing on the unmet needs of foster boys, who were among the disenfranchised and whose circumstances threatened to rob them of their dreams for a bright future. Dr. Washington resides in Maryland, where she enjoys cooking southern cuisine, reading, writing, ballroom dancing, traveling, spending quality time with her granddaughters, other family members, and her foster boys, and doing God's work ("giving back"). She is also an author of two award-winning books: "Driven To Succeed: An Inspirational Memoir of Lessons Learned Through Faith, Family & Favor" and "Aunt Hattie's Cookbook: Southern Comfort Food Favorites". To learn more about Dr. Washington, to purchase her books, and to arrange speaking engagements, book signings, book discussions, workshops, etc., please contact the author directly at drhattie@washingtonpublishingenterprises.com (443-804-6545) or visit her website: www.drhnwashington.com.