Megan Pamela Ruth Madison

Dr. Megan Pamela Ruth Madison is a political educator and a lifelong student of radical Black feminism. She earned her PhD in social policy from Brandeis University. As a scholar-activist, her approach to research and practice is guided by the Sociopolitical Ecology of Development, a theoretical framework that she developed as a part of her dissertation. Megan has served on the boards of the National Association for the Education for Young Children and Jews for Racial and Economic Justice. With Jessica Ralli, she coauthors First Conversations--an award-winning series of anti-bias books for young children and their grown-ups.

Jessica Ralli is the early literacy programs coordinator at Brooklyn Public Library, where she develops and manages grant-funded programming including Books Unbanned Storytimes. She has an MA in early childhood special education from Teachers College, Columbia University, and has taught in museums, schools, and libraries. Jessica is a contributor to School Library Journal, and in 2020, she received the Library Journal Movers and Shakers Award for her advocacy work in libraries. Jessica is currently coauthoring the award-winning First Conversations series with Megan Madison, published by RISE x Penguin Workshop.

Jonathan Eden is an Autistic writer and illustrator who loves to create imaginative, diverse worlds. He believes every story has the power to inspire change and encourage children to celebrate themselves!