"Children need literature that serves as a window onto lives and experiences different from their own, and literature that serves as a mirror reflecting themselves and their cultural values, attitudes and behaviors."

Dr. Rudine Sims Bishop

Dr. Bishop is the 2007 NCTE Outstanding Educator in the English Language Arts Award which is awarded to a distinguished national or international educator who has made major contributions to the field of language arts in elementary education. Dr. Bishop is the author of several articles and books exploring the representation and the role of culture in children's literature including "Shadow and Substance: Afro-American Experience in Contemporary Children's Literature" (1982), "Presenting Walter Dean Myers" (1990), "Kaleidoscope: A Multicultural Booklist for Grades K-8" (1994), "Wonders: The best children's poems of Effie Lee Newsome" (1999) and the forthcoming "Free within Ourselves: The Development of African American Children's Literature" (2007).

Ms. Cheryl Willis Hudson

Ms. Hudson was a co-founder of Just Us Books, Inc. in 1988. Just Us Books is an independent publishing company that focuses on African-American books for children and young adults. Her areas of expertise include multicultural children's literature, multicultural children's publishing and diversity in education. In 2003, Ms. Hudson was inducted into the International Literary Hall of Fame for Writers of African Descent. She is the author of many children's books including "AFRO-BETS," "Hands Can," "Glo Goes Shopping ," "Many Colors of Mother Goose" and "Bright Eyes, Brown Skin." "Construction Zone" is her latest title which is forthcoming from Candlewick Press.

Mr. Andrew Jackson

Mr. Jackson is Executive Director Queens Borough Public Library Langston Hughes Community Library and Cultural Center. The Queens Borough Public Library is committed to the global exchange of information and serves as a model for the provision of services to diverse populations for libraries worldwide. The Langston Hughes Community Library and Cultural Center was the result of a grass-roots effort to create a community library that reflected the heritage of African-Americans. Mr. Jackson has been the recipient of the African-American of Distinction award from former governor Mario Cuomo in 1994, is a member of the New York State Freedom Trail Commission and is the immediate past president of the Black Caucus of the American Library Association (BCALA).

Dr. Carole J. McCollough

Dr. McCollough is chair of the Coretta Scott King Task Force of the Ethnic and Multicultural Information Exchange Round Table (EMIERT) of the American Library Association. The task force selects the Coretta Scott King Award which was created to recognize and nurture the African American authors and illustrators of children's literature, and the John Steptoe Award for New Talent which was created to recognize excellence in writing or illustration of African-American children's literature by new authors/illustrators.

Ms. Effie Lee Morris

Ms. Morris is a nationally recognized activist and advocate for children and youth and visionary for children's services in libraries. She has been a pioneer in children's services throughout her distinguished career in the profession including heading services for children at the Library for the Blind of the New York Public Library and serving as the first coordinator of children's services at San Francisco Public Library. She was the first African-American president of the Public Library Association, a division of the American Library Association and a founding member of Social Responsibilities Round Table of the ALA. Ms. Morris served as president of the National Braille Association for two terms. She is the founding president of the San Francisco chapter of the Women's National Book Association. The Effie Lee Morris Historical and Research Collection of Children's Literature, named in her honor, is housed in the main San Francisco Library and hosts an Effie Lee Morris Memorial Lecture every year.

Robin Sally

Ms. Sally has been the CDF National Freedom Schools Curriculum Coordinator since 1997. She also serves as the Director of the CDF office in Marlboro County, SC. Ms. Sally is a veteran teacher, having taught for 17 years in the public school systems of Dallas, Texas, and Charlotte, NC. Prior to becoming the director of the National Freedom Schools Curriculum, she served for several years as a volunteer in the Marlboro County Freedom Schools. Each year Ms. Sally, along with the Freedom Schools Curriculum Committee, reads and selects the best books for the approximately 135 Freedom School sites across the country. After books are selected, she and her committee write lesson plans to accompany the books. The lesson plans are developed around the national Freedom Schools theme, "I Can and Must Make a Difference."

Dr. Darwin Henderson

Dr. Henderson is an expert in cultural and critical analysis, reviews of literature and interviews of acclaimed authors and illustrators of 20th century African American writers and illustrators of literature for children and youth. Dr. Henderson was the 2006-2007 Chair of the Coretta Scott King Book Award jury of the American Library Association. He is author of numerous articles and has recently published, "Exploring Culturally Diverse Literature for Children and Adolescents: Learning to Listen in New Ways" (2005).

Dr. Dianne Johnson

Dr. Johnson is an expert in African-American and multicultural children's literature and its history as well as an author of children's literature. She is the author of "Presenting Laurence Yep" (1995), "The Best of the Brownies' Book" (1996), editor of "The Collected Works of Langston Hughes, Volume 11: The Works for Children" (2003). She writes books for children under the name, Dinah Johnson; her works for children include: "All Around Town" (1998), "Sunday Week" (1999), "Quinnie Blue" (2000) and "Sitting Pretty: A Celebration of Black Dolls" (2000). She has three titles forthcoming: "Tom Feelings, My Daddy" (Third World Press); "Black Magic" (Henry Holt); and "Hair Dance" (Henry Holt).