Emma Ambrosi is an undergraduate student who is studying conservation biology and entomology at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. She also currently serves as an Undergraduate Assistant in Media Production at the UMN Center for Climate Literacy.

André Borka (M.S., Metropolitan State University) teaches 10th and 12th grade English Language Arts at Richfield High School.

Kelsey Didrikson currently serves as the Learning Resources & Instructional Support Coordinator for Warroad Public Schools. Kelsey stepped into school leadership after 15 years in the secondary English classroom, teaching almost everything from 7th grade English to CIHS courses. An English teacher at heart, she has a passion for building both a love and appreciation of all things literacy with students. She also serves on The Reading League Minnesota’s Board and enjoys connecting with other educators via X/Twitter @MrsFDidrikson.

Terrance Kwame-Ross (Ph.D., University of Minnesota, Twin Cities) is an associate professor of Education at Augsburg University. He has taught and worked with K-12 and adult learners, in and outside of school settings. Terrance’s license records include Kindergarten-6, 5th-9th grades, Language Arts, Social Science, and Adult Basic Education. He teaches and uses language arts, as a liberatory method, throughout the curriculum, to promote learners’ freedom and participation in schools and society. He can be reached at kwameros@augsburg.edu

Katie Laugen teaches both middle and high school English at Roseau School to encourage a lifelong love of learning. She holds a MS in Literacy Education from Hamline University as well as a BA English and a BS in Communication Arts/Literature Education from Minnesota State University Moorhead.

John Leppik is a senior English student at the University of Minnesota Duluth. In addition to his studies, he is currently editing the fourth draft of his first novel, with another planned after graduation. Over the summer he intends to take a job with Americorps and help run a summer program for Denfeld High School. He can be contacted at OkaLeppik@proton.me

McKenzie Rabenn has extensive experience in elementary education, having taught throughout the Midwest. She recently earned her Ph.D. in Teaching and Learning from the University of North Dakota (UND). Currently, she serves as an online, adjunct professor for the University of Wisconsin-River Falls and the University of Wisconsin-Superior.

Marly Schrom is currently a high school English teacher at Marshall School in Duluth, MN. She received a BA in Russian Studies from Carleton College in 2019 and a MN teaching license in Communication Arts and Literature from the University of Minnesota Duluth in 2023. 

Hiawatha Smith, Ph.D., is an associate professor of literacy education at the University of Wisconsin River Falls. There he primarily teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in children’s and adolescent literature and English language arts methods. His professional contributions span a wide range of literacy and teacher education areas and have been recognized by the academic community, as evidenced by his scholarly publications, membership in the Diversity Scholars Network at the University of Michigan, the 2022 NCTE Early Career Educator of Color award, and affiliation with various professional literacy-related organizations.

Kathryn Van Wert is Assistant Professor of English at the University of Minnesota Duluth, where she teaches courses in twentieth and twenty-first century American, British, and Anglophone literature.

*The 2024 issue also includes the work of several student authors in Minnesota who were Gold Key Winners in this year’s Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. See their work here.