Dr. Reid Lyon has had a distinguished career as a research scientist, professor, classroom teacher, special education teacher, neuropsychologist, school psychologist, and leader in the development of evidence-based education policy at federal and state levels. From 1992 until 2005, Dr. Lyon served as the Chief of the Child Development and Behavior Branch within the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development at the National Institutes of Health.
Renée Watson is a poet, a teacher, and an award-winning author of books for young readers, including the Ryan Hart middle grade series, the picture book biography Harlem’s Little Blackbird: The Florence Mills Story, the story of Maya Angelou told in free verse (Maya’s Song), the picture book Born on the Water, and the middle grade novel Some Places More Than Others. Many of her books are inspired by her experiences growing up as a Black girl in the Pacific Northwest.
