Author Biographies

Jennifer Allen

Jennifer Allen

Jennifer Allen is a literacy specialist in grades 3-5 for the Waterville, Maine, school district, where she works as a reading coach and leads professional development programs for teachers. Jennifer has presented her work to regional and national audiences through state literacy organizations, the International Reading Association, and the National Council of Teachers of English. She is a frequent contributor to Choice Literacy and Lead Literacy. Jennifer is the author of Becoming a Literacy Leader: Supporting Learning and Change and A Sense of Belonging: Sustaining and Retaining New Teachers.

Jeff Anderson

Jeff Anderson

For nearly thirty years, Jeff has inspired writers and teachers of grades 1-10 with the power and joy of the writing process. He has written five books for Stenhouse Publishers. He also writes middle-grade novels.

Andrea Hartwig

Andrea Hartwig

Andrea Hartwig earned her undergraduate teaching degree from St. Norbert College and her master’s degree in reading from Alverno College. She has spent ten years teaching first and second grade in southeastern Wisconsin. She currently lives in Cedarburg, Wisconsin, with her husband, Brian, who is also an educator, and their two young daughters.

Angela Kohnen

Angela Kohnen

Angela M. Kohnen is an Assistant Professor of Literacy Education at the University of Florida. Prior to earning her doctorate at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, she taught English Language Arts in the St. Louis area. She loves working with students at all levels to explore questions of genuine curiosity.

Ruth Ayres

Ruth Ayres

As a full-time writing coach for Wawasee School District in northern Indiana, Ruth spends her days helping students find meaning in their stories, and encouraging teachers to reflect and refine the art of teaching. "I love documenting ordinary stories from everyday life," Ruth says.

Myra Barrs

Myra Barrs

Jane Baskwill

Jane Baskwill

Jane Baskwill is an associate professor at Mount Saint Vincent University in Nova Scotia. A former classroom teacher and school principal, Jane is the author of many professional books and articles for teachers, as well as several children's picture books.

Patricia Bearden

Patricia Bearden

Patricia Bearden is the president of the International Society of Sons and Daughters of Slave Ancestry. She has brought over twenty years of teaching experience to her work as a teacher consultant for the Center for City Schools.

Teri Beaver

Teri Beaver

Teri Beaver is an elementary-level teacher at the University of Northern Colorado Laboratory School, one of the few K-12 schools housed on a university campus. While researching writing assessments for the Tointon Institute of Educational Change, she found none specific enough to inform instruction and began developing the Author's Profile.