David Beard is professor of Rhetoric in the Department of English, Linguistics, and Writing Studies at the University of Minnesota Duluth. He is former editor, in another lifetime, of Wisconsin English Journal. He works in many scholarly communities, including the International Listening Association, the Professional Wrestling Studies Association, and Minnesota Writing and English (MnWe). His current projects explore rural challenges and the role of rural literacy education in healing political divides.
Chelsea Bowker is a Secondary Literacy Specialist serving both Tech High School and the St. Cloud Area School District. Holding a Master’s in Educational Technology, she collaborates closely with teachers to introduce and refine multi-tiered literacy instruction and assessment for future-ready student success. Her background includes a decade spent teaching Language Arts and College/Career Literacy to high school students, providing her with valuable insights that inform her efforts to support diverse learners and elevate student learning outcomes across the board.
Austin Castro is a Secondary Language Arts teacher at ISD 742. He graduated with a BA in Communication Arts and Literature from St. Cloud State University. He is currently working on his Master’s Degree in Curriculum and Instruction at St. Mary’s University, MN. He has extensive experiences in literacy, working with college students, including adult multilingual learners.
Rebecca Chatham-Vazquez (Ph.D., Arizona State University) is an Assistant Professor and the Director of English Education at North Dakota State University. She specializes in teacher education, methods of teaching reading, Young Adult Literature, and rural teacher support. She grounds herself with meditation and yoga and loves reading and gardening and, most especially, spending time with her husband and daughter. She is a former board member of both the Montana and Arizona Affiliates and a current member of the North Dakota Affiliate of NCTE.
Alison Criss, M.S., is a book nerd, home cook and sustainable gardener who also loves to teach. She was the recipient of the 2022 NCTE Outstanding Middle Level Educator in ELA award, and infuses her classroom with art, music, laughter, and student voices. After a year leave in Oakland, CA, she is excited to share space with youth and preservice teachers again this fall.
Susan Decker (D.A., Murray State University) is a Professor of English at Martin Luther College (New Ulm, MN) and Certified Wellness Coach through the National Academy of Sports Medicine. Her research specialties include fine arts integration, Shakespeare studies, English pedagogy & English teacher education, teaching literature, literary theory & analysis, and teacher wellness. She can be reached at deckerse@mlc-wels.edu.
Jon Fila is a teacher, educational leader and author specializing in AI integration and innovation in education. He equips schools and organizations with strategies to ethically integrate AI, mitigate bias, and embrace inclusion. Through hands-on workshops, keynotes, and strategic guidance, Jon bridges the gap between cutting-edge AI tools and real-world classroom implementation—always with a focus on equitable learning experiences. Jon was a 2022 Minnesota Teacher of the Year Finalist and provides services through InclusiveAiStrategies.com. He also writes the comic book Dolorem.
Abby Hartzell is a Language and Literature teacher at the International School of Riga in Riga, Latvia and teacher ambassador for The Center for Climate Literacy at the University of Minnesota. She is passionate about teaching climate literacy through stories to empower youth with knowledge of climate change, climate justice, and global understanding.
Dr. Rosalind Hudson is an Assistant Professor of Professional Practice at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where she teaches in the Lutrill & Pearl Payne School of Education Department. She has served as a K-12 dual-certified teacher in elementary and special education in Texas, New Mexico, Tennessee, and Louisiana. Dr. Hudson has delivered conference presentations across various levels, including local, state, national, and international levels, where she shares research insights for elementary teachers on literacy difficulties with mathematical word problems. She serves as a peer reviewer for various educational journals. Dr. Hudson’s research interests are elementary literacy difficulties with mathematical word problems for aspiring and current teachers. Additionally, Dr. Hudson consults as an educational diagnostician for local school districts.
Keenan Jones (Loft Mirrors and Windows Fellow, 2021–2022) is a middle school English teacher in Wayzata Public Schools and a dedicated advocate for literacy. His debut picture book, Saturday Morning at the ‘Shop, was released on January 7, 2025, through Beach Lane Books (Simon & Schuster). His creative work explores themes of community, identity, and Black joy, while his current research focuses on literacy as a tool for liberation in underserved classrooms. Jones has presented at national writing workshops, including the Midwest Writers Workshop at Ball State University (Muncie, Indiana) and the Young Writers Conference at Bethany Lutheran College (Mankato, Minnesota). Please visit http://www.keenanjwrites.com to learn more about his writing and educational work.
Patrick Hueller teaches English at Irondale High School. He has an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Minnesota. His work has been published in scads of awesome journals and been nominated for the Pushcart Prize. His book of stories, tentatively titled Fake Tattoos, is forthcoming (Cornerstone Press, 2027). You can check out his story “Your Aurora Borealis” here: https://www.mudroommag.com/patrick-hueller
Anastassia S. McNulty, PhD is an EL teacher at ISD742 and an Adjunct Professor of TESOL at Concordia University, Chicago and Concordia University, Nebraska. Dr. McNulty is an EL teacher at Tech High School, St. Cloud, MN. She co-teaches LA9 and Science 9 classes. She also teaches various graduate courses in second language acquisition theory and practice as an adjunct. Dr. McNulty has more than 25 years of experience in TESOL and extensive practical experience working with second language learners at various settings. Her research interests are in language acquisition and technology, assessment, pedagogy, bilingual education and literacy.
Kyle “Guante” Tran Myhre is a spoken word poet and teaching artist based in Minneapolis. He’s performed at the United Nations, contributed to a Grammy-winning album, been a member of two National Poetry Slam championship teams, and visited countless schools, conferences, and festivals, using spoken word as a doorway into dialogue and community-building. Find his work, as well as an archive of resources related to spoken word, at www.guante.info.
Lisa Ortmann, PhD is an associate professor in education at Gustavus Adolphus College, where she works to prepare teachers of literacy across the grade levels and content areas. Her research areas include teachers’ uses of diverse literature, disciplinary literacy practices, and instructional coaching. Recent publications include “Developing responsive disciplinary literacies for student teaching in social studies” in JAAL, and “The learner profiles of novice literacy coaches” in Reading Horizons. She serves as the Intellectual Freedom Chair for MCTE.
Jennifer McCarty Plucker, Ed.D., is the Director of Professional Learning at Mackin Educational Resources. She leads virtual and onsite workshops to help teachers engage readers, foster critical thinking, and promote student choice and voice. Her research and writing focus on adolescents’ motivation and engagement in literacy. Before joining Mackin, she spent over 20 years in public education as an English teacher, speech coach, reading specialist, and district administrator.
Abigail Rombalski, Ph.D. learns so much from her two teenagers, youth researchers, educators, organizers, and being outside. She taught for 15 years in secondary ELA classrooms and has supported school improvement efforts through Minnesota State Service Cooperatives. Abby is a community-engaged researcher, co-founder of YoUthROC, and faculty member at the University of MN-Twin Cities.
Kay Rosheim earned her PhD in literacy education from the University of Minnesota.
She is an adjunct professor and supervisor of student teachers at the University of St.
Thomas and a lecturer at the University of Minnesota. As an independent literacy
educator, Kay works with students in K-6. Her research interests include studying the
role of literacy in helping quiet students navigate the classroom space, applying the
reciprocity of reading-writing as a strategy in teaching learners who have historically
struggled with reading, and looking at equitable literacy assessment practices in
multilingual learners. Before teaching at the college level, Kay worked as a K-6 literacy
specialist and 6th-grade classroom teacher.
Daniel Ruefman (Ph.D. in Composition & TESOL from Indiana University of Pennsylvania) is a Professor of Rhetoric & Composition at the University of Wisconsin—Stout. He is a widely published writer of poetry and prose, and an award-winning qualitative researcher with research interests in composition pedagogy, creative writing, poetics, and trauma writing.
Matthew Schempp (M.S., Capella University) is the Lead English Teacher and Reading Intervention Specialist at Bluesky Charter School, a 100% online school for students across the state of MN. His work centers on raising student literacy and helping teachers prepare students for life after High School. He can be reached at matthew.schempp@blueskyschool.org.
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 encompass a broad spectrum of literacy and teacher education topics, earning recognition within the academic community through his scholarly publications. You can find his published work in journals such as Reading Research Quarterly, English Leadership Quarterly, and The Dragon Lode.
Danielle Kubasko Sullivan is an Associate Professor of English and English Education Program Coordinator at Bemidji State University. Her research focuses on culturally sustaining, trauma-informed approaches to English education, particularly in rural contexts. She is co-founder of Reaching Rural Readers, an online summer book club for rural teens facilitated by preservice teachers, which also serves as a research platform for studying adolescent reading motivation and preservice teacher self-efficacy development. She is vice president of Minnesota Council of Teachers of English.
Anna McNulty Taylor is a Lecturer in Literacy Education at the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities, where she recently earned her Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction. Before starting her doctoral studies, she spent 13 years working as a middle and high school ELA teacher, reading specialist, K-12 instructional coach, and elementary school supporting school leader in St. Louis, Missouri.
MEJ 