Cook has taught composition courses at Auburn University, where he also received his M.A. in English with a concentration in rhetoric and composition. He is passionate about intersectional activism and about having tough-but-necessary conversations to advance social justice. He considers love and compassion to be integral to his work and activism.
Elizabeth Varela taught ESL in elementary and secondary schools for nine years. She holds a Ph.D. in applied linguistics from Georgetown University and has been an adjunct professor at The George Washington University and an assistant professor and acting coordinator of the TESOL program in the College of Education at the University of Maryland. Varela is an elementary ESL specialist and principal investigator for a Title VII project for the Arlington Public Schools.
Jeffrey is a seventh-grade English teacher at West Virginia’s DuPont Middle School. He holds certifications for English and social studies and often blends the two subjects in his classroom. In addition to teaching, he coaches track and field at DuPont; from time to time he uses poetry and history lessons to motivate his team. Webb has had pieces published in Vandalia, Red Mud Review, Pikeville Review and The Charleston Anvil.
George is an award-winning teacher and author. The child of Holocaust survivors, he began teaching in 1983 to tell his family’s story and increase acceptance and understanding among young people. Cassutto was an innovator in bringing the internet to the K-12 classroom during the 1990s. He has since published The Internet Pocket Guide for Teachers, Civics Lesson Plans and US History Lesson Plans for new, overworked and out-of-subject-area teachers.
Welcoming Schools offers tools, lessons and resources to help educators embrace family diversity, avoid gender stereotypes, and end bullying and name-calling in elementary schools. The organization also offers resources for school administrators and educators to support students who don't conform to gender norms. It was initiated by a group of parents and educators to meet the needs of students whose family structures are not well represented or included in school environments.
