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Author Biographies

Elisabeth Spinner is a doctoral candidate at Western Michigan University. Her research focuses on supporting secondary English teachers as they implement reading and writing content and skills in their curriculum to encourage students to engage in activism. Before beginning her doctoral program, she taught middle and high school English.

Emily Sommer has taught high school English in southeast Michigan for 25 years and supervises secondary student teaching interns at Oakland University. Her areas of focus include creating effective mentoring programs for new teachers and informal team-building to improve school culture.

Naitnaphit Limlamai, a former high school English teacher, is currently a doctoral candidate in the Joint Program in English and Education at the University of Michigan where she is completing her dissertation on secondary English teacher preparation, how that work manifests justice, and how those ideas travel from university preparation course work to student teaching classrooms. She has additional interests in how writers develop as such and collaboration. She teaches secondary English methods courses; works as an editorial assistant for Research in the Teaching of English; and serves as the diversity, inclusion, justice, and equity chair of the Michigan Council of Teachers of English.

Anna J. Roseboro, wife, mother, educator and poet, is known for her work with groups like the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), the Conference on English Leadership, and the California Association of Teachers of English. With 40 years experience in public and private schools, she is a National Board Certified Teacher vetted by the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards. Ms. Roseboro has mentored the NCTE’s Early Career Educators of Color cohorts and currently mentors online and coaches new writers.

Lynne Kelso Lesky teaches English at Petoskey High School where she advocates for and actively promotes literacy while creating and nurturing a lifelong love of reading and learning in young people. She serves as her school’s Diversity Club co-sponsor and as the teacher representative for the Title VI Indian Education Parent Committee.

Kim Stein is an English teacher at Bridgeport High School, an adjunct professor at Saginaw Valley State University, and a doctoral student at Oakland University. She is passionate about utilizing inclusive curriculum resources to engage students and raise achievement, as well as fostering collaboration among educators.

Rick Kreinbring works with the incredible English department at Avondale High school in Auburn Hills. He is currently teaching AP Literature, AP Language and Composition, English 11 and he heads the Writing Center. He has been privileged to work and learn with MCTE, NCTE and the National Writing Project.

Shelley L. Esman taught early elementary school for twenty years before becoming a middle school instructional coach for grades 5-8 at a high poverty school in Michigan for ten years. She is in the third year of her English Education Doctoral program at Western Michigan University. Her area of research is Holocaust Education. She teaches Children’s Literature and Writing in the Elementary Classroom at WMU as well as developmental classes at Kalamazoo Valley Community College. In addition, she is the Elementary Chairperson of MCTE and an active member of DIJE.

Abstract

Though teaching has felt discouraging at times throughout the past year, this article looks at how a group of educators used a book club to not only maintain a hopeful outlook, but also learn more about antiracist teaching. Their work has benefited not only their personal journeys, but also their classrooms and school districts.

Publication Date

2021

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