Marguerite Rucker is a mother, teacher and cheerleader. After 20 years of teaching, she currently teaches sixth grade. Her master’s degree is in educational leadership. She also opened a Performing Arts Academy with her best friend and trained several successful child actors and dancers who have appeared in TV shows and commercials. She is the proud mother of two high school children and the wife of a school psychologist.
Jacqueline Yahn is from the Ohio Valley, part of the greater Appalachian region. She earned a bachelor’s degree in secondary English education from West Liberty State College and a master’s degree from Ohio State University. She currently teaches seventh-grade language arts in Central Ohio and is a doctoral student at Ohio University where she is pursuing a degree in educational administration with a focus on rural and Appalachian education.
Jeff McMahon is a teaching artist in New York City public schools. For his own performance work, he has received eight fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts.
Danna Bell is an Educational Resource Specialist at the Library of Congress. Trained as a librarian and archivist, she provides reference support for the Library's teacher programs. Prior to joining the Library's K-12 efforts, she provided support for members of the public using the Library's online collections.
Alfredo J. Artiles is Professor of Special Education in the Mary Lou Fulton College of Education at Arizona State University. Artiles has published extensively in the general, special, and bilingual education fields. His recent work has focused on the disproportionate placement of English Language Learners and ethnic minority students in special education. His work has also addressed the ways teachers become social justice educators in urban schools. He is a principal investigator for the National Center for Culturally Responsive Educational Systems (NCCRESt).
Roozbeh is an assistant professor of comparative and international education in the College of Education and Human Development at the University of Minnesota. He is the author of numerous research articles that examine the intersections of social inequality, formations of youth citizenship and social belonging, and education reform in contexts characterized by rapid sociopolitical change. Shirazi has conducted research and worked on educational initiatives in New York and other U.S. cities, as well as Jordan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, France and the Maldives.
Rusul Alrubail is a writer on education, teaching and learning. She is also the editor of Medium’s The Synapse publication on learning, teaching and education. Her work focuses on teacher development and training, English language learners and pedagogical practices in and out of the classroom. Before taking up freelance writing, Alrubail was a professor at Seneca College in Ontario for five years. She taught college English and Literature to domestic and international students. Alrubail is an educator who is passionate about using social media as a digital learning tool to build networks and
Dr. Howard Stevenson is the Constance Clayton Professor of Urban Education, Professor of Africana Studies, and former Chair of the Applied Psychology and Human Development Division in the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania. He is a nationally recognized researcher in independent and public K-12 schools and teaches how children can develop healthy racial identities through racial stress management. The PLAAY (Preventing Long-term Anger and Aggression in Youth) Project uses basketball and racial socialization to help youth and parents cope with stress from violence
Jamilah Pitts is an educator, writer, social entrepreneur and yoga teacher whose work centers the liberation, healing and holistic development of communities of the global majority. She has served in various roles and spaces to promote racial justice and healing as a teacher, coach, assistant principal and as a dean. She has worked in educational spaces domestically in Massachusetts and New York, and internationally in the Dominican Republic, China and India. As the founder and CEO of Jamilah Pitts Consulting, she partners with schools, universities, organizations and communities to advance