Cynthia Leitich Smith is the 2021 NSK Neustadt Laureate and a New York Times bestselling author of books for young readers. She is also the author-curator of Heartdrum, a Native-focused imprint at HarperCollins Children’s Books, and serves as the Katherine Paterson Inaugural Endowed Chair on the faculty of the MFA program in Writing for Children and Young Adults at Vermont College of Fine Arts. Cynthia is a citizen of the Muscogee Nation and lives in Austin, Texas.
To see more of Cynthia’s short stories, essays, and poems, take a look at her collected works for children and young adults on her website and blog, Cynsations.
Dr. Cynthia Lundgren is an English language development specialist at WIDA. For more than 37 years, she has taught future ESL and bilingual teachers as well as ESL students throughout the U.S. and South America. Her special interests are reflective practice and the development of cultural sensitivity.
Dallas Clayton is an artist, children’s book author, and philanthropist. He successfully self-published his first two books, An Awesome Book! and An Awesome Book of Thanks! Clayton has also founded An Awesome World Foundation, which promotes literacy. For every book he sells he gives one away.
