Born and raised in Brooklyn, Torrey Maldonado is an acclaimed author and educator whose work impacts middle grade, young adult, and elementary school literature. He approaches thirty years teaching and has been celebrated by two NYC Chancellors as a top culturally responsive educator. Named “Best Books of the Year” by NPR, The Washington Post, Oprah, and the New York Times, Hands, What Lane?, Tight, and Secret Saturdays are inspired by his and his students’ lives. They're praised for their authenticity about friendship, family, and choices. Torrey contributes to anthologies alongside celebrated authors. Children’s literature celebrates his 2026 debut picture-book, Just Right, and upcoming picture-books.

Dr. Tracey T. Flores is an associate professor of language and literacy at the University of Texas at Austin. A former ELD and ELA teacher, she spent eight years serving culturally and linguistically diverse K–8 students, families, and communities in Glendale and Phoenix, Arizona. Her research examines Latina mothers’ and daughters’ language and literacy practices, the teaching of young writers in diverse classrooms, and family and community literacies. She founded Somos Escritoras/We Are Writers, a creative space for Latina girls (grades 6–12) to share and perform stories from their lives through art, theater, and writing.