Author Ebony Joy Wilkins, Ph.D., is a writer of children's literature and professor of English and education. Ebony's education research centers on African American children's literature and children's written responses, and her stories for children and teens aim to highlight marginalized voices. Her debut novel Sellout (Scholastic Press, 2010) is the story of an African American teen trying to find her place in the two very different worlds where she lives, the all-white New Jersey town where her parents raised her and her Grandmother Tilly's beloved Harlem, NY. Ebony currently resides in Chicago. More information can be found at her website at ebonyjoywilkins.com.

Subject consultant Jamor Gaffney is a high-school history teacher and contributor to the official Hidden Figures curriculum guide.

Literacy consultant Stephanie Laird is an instructional coach at Mitchellville Elementary in Mitchellville, Iowa, and is currently serving on the International Literacy Association's (ILA) Board of Directors through 2019. She was the 2014 recipient of the ILA Technology and Literacy Award. Stephanie is the President-Elect of the Iowa Reading Association and was the 2017 Conference Chair of the Iowa Reading Association's annual conference. Along with being an ambassador and advocate for education, literacy, and teacher leadership across her state, Stephanie was a member of ILA's Literacy, eLearning, Communication, and Culture Committee and has contributed to the International Literacy Day Activity Kit, Literacy Daily, and ReadWriteThink.