University of Michigan Professor Launches Memoir on Journey with Bipolar Disorder

Please join the DEI Committee for the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) at the University of Michigan in celebrating mental health/disability advocate and Associate Professor of CEE at the University of Michigan, Ann E. Jeffers, on the launch of her memoir:

Can You Hear the Music? My Journey Through Madness.

Ann Jeffers shares her journey with mental illness, including receiving a diagnosis of bipolar disorder with psychotic features while she was on the tenure track in the College of Engineering at the University of Michigan. Her illness was complicated by the trauma she experienced as a graduate student at Virginia Tech from multiple incidents of violence including the 2007 mass shooting. At the advice of her medical team, she kept her mental illness hidden from the University of Michigan and continued to teach, attend conferences, and conduct research while actively symptomatic. Her memoir documents her experiences at the height of the illness. Now a tenured associate professor, Jeffers has become a vocal advocate for mental health and disability justice on campus and in the community.

The book launch will be on Thursday, November 30th with a hybrid lecture + Q & A portion from 6:30 - 7:30 PM ET and an in-person book signing and reception until 8:30 PM ET.

• Please register for the event by following this link. You will receive the Zoom Webinar link by registering for the virtual portion.
• Please see the book launch event flyer for more details. 
• Follow this informational book launch document for up-to-date information and upcoming parking directions. 

Note that the in-person event is on North Campus. Parking on North Campus is free after 5 pm, and there will be signage to the Iacocca Auditorium (GGBL 1571) at the main entrance to the building. 

• Remote CART captioning will be available.
• A limited supply of books is available for purchase (credit card only) at the event, or you may purchase the book, Can You Hear The Music? My Journey Through Madness, on Amazon.

Please reach out to event planner, Ava Armour (CEE Student Services Assistant), at [email protected] with any questions.