CEDAR FALLS -- Harry Potter has captured the hearts and minds of young and old readers alike since "The Sorcerer's Stone" hit the bookshelves in 1998.

Fans of the J.K. Rowling series are eagerly awaiting the publication of her seventh and final book in the series -- "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows." They need to know if Harry dies. They need to know if Voldemort lives.

But it isn't just the entertainment value that has Gina Burkhart, a UNI instructor in English language and literature, so intrigued by the boy wizard and his close friends. She sees much more in the Rowling volumes than quidditch matches and sorcery gone wrong. She sees an educational tool.

"Literature is a good basis for children to understand themselves," she said. "Even Harry makes bad choices and has to suffer the consequences."

In 2005 Burkhart published "A Parent's Guide to Harry Potter," but her interest in the books and the stories behind the stories didn't stop there. This spring Burkhart will travel to New Orleans where she will present a paper, "Raising Phoenixes in a Land of Crows -- Helping Our Children Rise Above Situational Ethics," at the Phoenix Rising conference. The five-day conference for academics, educators, librarians, writers, students and fans will tackle topics on all things Harry Potter.

Burkhart will focus her workshop on how Harry Potter, and more specifically his relationship with Dumbledore, can help children "rise about situational ethics." She hopes to teach those in attendance how to spot such situations in the book and in real life and then teach them how to pull that information out and discuss it with their children.

"Dumbledore represents the highest form of moral beings, even when he was facing death," Burkhart said. "I focus on how we are constantly confronted with situational ethics, but I will show they can still hold true to what is good and moral."