Freddy is President and CEO of TextProject, a nonprofit that provides resources to support higher reading levels. She was awarded the prestigious 2015 Oscar S. Causey Award for her outstanding contributions to reading research. Dr. Hiebert is a research associate at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She has worked in the field of early reading acquisition for 45 years, first as a teacher’s aide and teacher of primary-level students in California and subsequently as a teacher and researcher. Her research addresses how fluency, vocabulary, and knowledge can be fostered through appropriate texts.

Sharroky has trained thousands of educators in the area of cultural responsiveness. He has been a classroom teacher, a professional development coordinator, and a school founder and administrator. Dr. Hollie is a professor in teacher education at California State University Dominguez Hills. He has been a visiting professor for Webster University in St. Louis and a guest lecturer at Stanford and UCLA. He is the author of Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching and Learning 2e © 2017.

Jim is a well-known second language educator and a major contributor to the research in the field of bilingual education. He is a professor emeritus at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto. Dr. Cummins focuses on literacy development in multilingual school contexts as well as on the potential roles of technology in promoting language and literacy development. The TESOL community credits Dr. Cummins with the concept of Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills (BICS) and Cognitive Language Proficiency (CALP).

Roger is an acclaimed poet, performance artist, and educator. He is an adjunct instructor of creative writing at Fordham University (NYC), a writer-in-residence with Vision Intro Art and a poet-in-residence with Young Chicago Authors. He also teaches poetry at the Cook County Temporary Juvenile Detention Facility in Chicago. Roger is a two-time National Poetry Slam champion. His collections include Bury My Clothes (2013), which was a long-list finalist for a National Book Award. Other poetry volumes include Where Brooklyn At? (2016), Gully (2010) and Tarnish and Masquerade (2006).

Kelly is one of the leading voices for reading, writing, and literacy education. He teaches at Magnolia High School in Anaheim, California and received the Award for Classroom Excellence from the California Association of Teachers of English. Kelly taught secondary literacy courses at California State University Fullerton and served as the president of the Secondary Reading Group of the International Reading Association. He is the acclaimed author of numerous books, including In the Best Interest of Students: Staying True to What Works in the ELA Classroom (2015), Write Like This: Teaching Real-World Writing Through Modeling and Mentor Texts (2011), Readicide: How Schools Are Killing Reading and What You Can Do About It (2009).

William is an expert on literacy development for young adults, boys, and male youth. He is a professor of literacy in the Graduate School of Education at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, and has taught language arts in junior and senior high school in the Carolinas. Dr. Brozo is a distinguished author of numerous books, including Engaging Boys in Active Literacy (2019), Disciplinary and Content Literacy for Today’s Adolescents 6e (2017), RTI and the Adolescent Reader (2011), and To Be a Boy, To Be a Reader: Engaging Teen and Preteen Boys in Active Literacy (2010).

Sharon has published extensive research on literacy education, interventions, children with reading disabilities, and English learners. She is a professor in the College of Education at The University of Texas at Austin. Her publications include Teaching Students Who Are Exceptional, Diverse, and At Risk in the General Education Classroom (2018); Teaching Reading Comprehension to Students with Learning Difficulties (2015); Strategies for Teaching Students with Learning and Behavior Problems (2014); and Research-Based Method of Reading Instruction (2004).