Co-author Lisa Holewa is a former Associated Press news reporter who began her career in the Milwaukee, Wis. bureau. (A bit of trivia: There, she covered the arrest and insanity trial of Jeffrey Dahmer, and co-authored a book on Dahmer with fellow reporter Bob Dvorchak.) She later worked in the AP's Detroit bureau, and went on to lead the Tampa, Florida bureau. She left the AP in 2000 to freelance, and later moved back to the Milwaukee area with her family. She got the idea for "What Kindergarten Teachers Know" while helping out in her oldest daughter's kindergarten classroom. Her favorite part of the project was interviewing the amazing early childhood teachers who contributed their expertise for the book. Lisa and her husband have three children, ages nine, five and three. You can e-mail her at lisa@WhatTeachersKnow.com.
Co-author Joan Rice began her teaching career in preschool classrooms, and has spent the bulk of her 17 years' experience teaching preschool and kindergarten students. She has a master's degree in early childhood education, and is proudest of a pro-social teaching curriculum she developed and used in her classrooms. Joan was named a Teacher of the Year by the Betty Brinn Children's Museum, and now works with the selection committe choosing the teachers who receive the honor each year. She is married and has two daughters, age 13 and 11. You can e-mail her at joan@WhatTeachersKnow.com
Writer Jacquelyn Mitchard is a best-selling novelist, popular parenting columnist and mother of seven children who wrote the book's foreword. Ms. Mitchard's newest books include Still Summer and the young adult novel All We Know of Heaven. She is a columnist and contributing editor for Wondertime magazine. Visit her at www.jackiemitchard.com.
Artist Kim Abbati did the interior illustrations for "What Kindergarten Teachers Know." Now based in the Houston, Texas area, Kim received her degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where she studied film-making. An accomplished painter and illustrator, she has completed several master's level classes in portrait painting. Kim has two children, a 13-year-old boy and a 9-year-old girl. She has taught art classes at a Houston area elementary school and does private portrait work, in addition to helping run a cooperative art studio in the Houston area. You can see more of her work at www.KimAbbatiArt.com.