A 1986 graduate of Kankakee High School, Monica Fountain earned her bachelor’s degree, summa cum laude, in news-editorial journalism from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Fountain al...view moreA 1986 graduate of Kankakee High School, Monica Fountain earned her bachelor’s degree, summa cum laude, in news-editorial journalism from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Fountain also studied Spanish at the University of Seville in Spain. In 1992, she was awarded a British Marshall Scholarship and studied politics and economics at the University of Sussex in Brighton, England where she earned a bachelor’s degree in politics.
Fountain is the Director of Communications for Matteson School District 162 and Southland College Prep Charter High School in Richton Park, Illinois. She is also executive editor of WestSide Press (www.wspbooks.com), an independent publishing house, specializing in non-fiction literature. Fountain’s work appears in the latest book from WestSide Press, Dear Dad: Reflections on Fatherhood.
As a writer, Fountain has interviewed prisoners and presidents. She has written for some of the top newspapers in the country including The Washington Post, The Chicago-Sun-Times and The Chicago Tribune. As a staff writer at the Tribune, she covered a variety of issues including politics, crime, health and human services and social issues.
As a freelance writer, Fountain’s work has appeared in The Chicago Tribune where she has profiled celebrities and newsmakers from Rosa Parks to Queen Latifah. She has also written for the Washington Post Style section and Black Enterprise magazine.
Fountain was the Assistant Director of Advancement at the University of Illinois Laboratory High School, one of the top high schools in the country. Before joining University Laboratory High School, Fountain was a lecturer and coordinator of the Professional and Technical Writing program at Chicago State University and a consultant to Chicago State’s student newspaper. Fountain was also a director of the Roosevelt University High School Journalism Workshop in Chicago.
Fountain conducts a mentoring program for middle school girls. She has also given parent workshops on topics such as being an advocate for your child and has been a guest speaker at local schools. She has been a featured speaker at churches, women’s retreats, seminars and prayer breakfasts.
Fountain is currently working on several books including a devotional book for women and a children’s book.view less