Authors & Advisors

Kate Boehm Jerome

Program Author, Science

Kate Boehm Jerome has authored more than 80 science books for children. Her programs have earned three NSTA/CBC Outstanding Science Trade Books Awards and a Teacher’s Choice Award.

Peggy Altoff

Program Author, Social Studies

Peggy Altoff is a past president of NCSS and also recently served as a member of the NCSS Standards Revision Task Force. She is currently the Social Studies Coordinator Colorado Springs District 11, and previously worked in Maryland, first as the state specialist in Social Studies and then as K-12 Social Studies Supervisor in Carroll County, MD.

Mary Hawley

Program Author, Instructional Design

A former classroom teacher, Mary Hawley has more than twenty years of experience developing successful K-12 products in language development, literacy, and the content areas.

Scott K. Baker, PhD,

Scott K. Baker is the Associate Director of the Center on Teaching and Learning at the University of Oregon and the Director of Pacific Institutes for Research in Eugene, Oregon. His research interests include students with learning disabilities, instruction and assessment with English language learners, and translating research to practice.

Betty Ansin Smallwood, PhD,

Betty Ansin Smallwood manages Professional Services at the Center for Applied Linguistics in Washington, DC., where she oversees and delivers professional development and technical assistance projects for educators of ELLs nationwide.

Carla C. Johnson, EdD,

Carla C. Johnson is a past president of the National Middle Level Science Teacher’s Association and a former NSTA Council Member. She is currently an associate professor of science education and Director of the Furthering Urban STEMM Innovation, Outreach and New Research (FUSION) Center at the University of Cincinnati.

Gail L. Thompson, PhD,

Gail L. Thompson is a professor of education at Claremont Graduate University and has appeared on National Public Radio and PBS television’s Tony Brown’s Journal. Her publications include Through Ebony Eyes: What Teachers Need to Know but are Afraid to Ask About African American Students.

Margit McGuire, PhD

Margit McGuire is a past president of NCSS and former member of its Board of Directors. She currently serves as Director of Teacher Education in the Master in Teaching program at Seattle University. Her expertise includes curriculum development and social studies education.

Emma Violand-Sánchez, EdD,

Emma Violand-Sánchez retired as Supervisor of the Arlington Public Schools English for Speakers of Other Languages/High Intensity Language Training (ESOL/HILT) Office, in Arlington, VA. During her time in Arlington, Dr. Violand-Sánchez led the development and implementation of a comprehensive program for ELLs that is now cited as a national model.

Donna Ogle, EdD,

Donna Ogle is a professor in the Reading and Language Department of the National-Louis University. Her primary areas of interest are reading strategies and the process of instructional change in schools. The K-W-L strategy that she developed is widely used across North America.