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Judith Chalmer is the author of a book of poems, *Out of History's Junk Jar *(Time Being Books, 1995). She is the creator of a dance/narrative with oral histories, *Clearing Customs/Cruzando Fronteras/Preselenje*, on the lives of immigrants in central Vermont (1999), and is author and performer of *Don't Go In There!* a one-woman comedy on racial and ethnic consciousness in central Vermont (2002). She is co-founder of a women's interracial dialog group that has met for 3 years in central Vermont. Her essays have appeared in *Celebrating The Lives of Jewish Women* (Haworth Press, 1997), *Urban Spaghetti*, *RAGU*: online journal of the Adult Degree Program at Vermont College and other journals.

Michael C. Dawson is the John D. MacArthur Professor of Political Science and the College at the University of Chicago. He has also taught at the University of Michigan and Harvard University. Dawson received his BA with high honors from Berkeley in 1982 and doctorate degree from Harvard University in 1986. Professor Dawson was co-principal investigator of the 1988 National Black Election Study and was principal investigator with Ronald Brown of the 1993-1994 National Black Politics Study. His research interests have included the development of quantitative models of African American political behavior, identity, and public opinion, the political effects of urban poverty, and African American political ideology. This work also includes delineating the differences in African American public opinion from those of white Americans. More recently he has combined his quantitative work with work in political theory. His previous two books, *Behind the Mule: Race and Class in African-American Politics (Princeton 1994)* and *Black Visions: The Roots of Contemporary African-American Political Ideologies (Chicago 2001), *won multiple awards, including Black Visions winning the prestigious Ralph Bunche Award from the American Political Science Association. Dawson has also published numerous journal articles, book chapters and opinion pieces. Dawson's strong interest in the impact of the information technology revolution on society and politics, as well as his research on race are both fueled in part from his time spent as an activist while studying and working in Silicon Valley for several years. Dawson is currently finishing an edited volume, *Fragmented Rainbow*, on race and civil society in the United States as well as a solo volume,* Black Politics in the Early 21st Century.*

Reginald Hudlin is a writer, producer, director and executive in the modern black film movement, creating movies such as House Party, Boomerang and Bebe's Kids. His work in television includes producing and directing The Bernie Mac Show, directing the pilot of the hit series Everybody Hates Chris and executive producing the animated series The Boondocks. Hudlin was also the first President of Entertainment for Black Entertainment Television, creating 17 of the top 20 rated shows in the history of the network. Hudlin sits on the boards of the Black Filmmaker Foundation, the UCLA Film, Television and Theatre Department, and the Hollywood Television and Radio Society.

Consulting Editor of *Hip Mama* magazine, Ariel is also the author of *The Hip Mama Survival Guide*, *The Mother Trip*, *Atlas of the Human Heart*, and *Whatever Mom*.

China Martens is the editor of *The Future Generation*, a zine for subculture parents, kids, friends and others. She has a short story published in *Breeder: Real Life Stories from the New Generation of Mothers* and is a columnist for *Slug and Lettuce*I was...a student nurse

Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter has worked for more than three decades to improve the quality of life for people around the world. She is an advocate for mental health, early childhood immunization, human rights, and conflict resolution through her work at The Carter Center in Atlanta. She also champions professional and family caregivers through her work at the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregiving at Georgia Southwestern State University in Americus, Georgia, near her home town of Plains, GA.

Jack M. Wilson is the 25th President of the five-campus, 60,000-student University of Massachusetts System- serving since September 2, 2003. During his career, he has served various institutions as Professor of Physics, Department Chair, Research Center Director, Dean, Vice President, Provost, and a private sector entrepreneur. At the University of Massachusetts, he served previously as the Vice President for Academic Affairs and as founding CEO of UMassOnline. Prior to arriving at UMass, Wilson was the J. Erik Jonsson '22 Distinguished Professor of Physics, Engineering Science, Information Technology, and Management at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where he also had served as a Dean, Research Center Director, and Provost. Before being appointed at Rensselaer, he served at the University of Maryland, College Park and as an officer of the American Association of Physics Teachers, the American Institute of Physics, and the American Physical Society. Wilson is nationally and internationally known for his leadership in the reform of higher education programs, winning the Theodore Hesburgh Award, the Boeing Award, and the Pew Charitable Trust Prize for his innovative programs. He was awarded an Outstanding Civilian Service Medal by the U.S. Army for service to the Army Education program. Wilson earned his bachelor's degree at Thiel College in 1967, his master's degree in 1970 and his doctorate in 1972 in Physics, both from Kent State University.

Keith Motley, Ph.D., is the eighth chancellor of the University of Massachusetts Boston. He leads an institution with approximately 13,500 undergraduate and graduate students, a full-time and part-time faculty of more than 800, and a $254 million annual budget. Between 2005 and his appointment as chancellor which began on July 1, 2007, Dr. Motley served as vice president for business, marketing, and public affairs at the University of Massachusetts President's Office, where he reported directly to President Jack M. Wilson, working closely with university leaders and the Board of Trustees. Prior to joining the President's Office, he was the interim chancellor of the University of Massachusetts Boston, where he previously had served as vice chancellor for student affairs, following a twenty-plus-year career in higher education administration that included ten years as dean of student services at Northeastern University. As vice president for business, marketing, and public affairs at the University of Massachusetts President's Office, Dr. Motley was instrumental in leading strategic, system-wide initiatives and working closely with the Board of Trustees committees on advancement and athletics. He instituted the Development Council, comprised of vice chancellors from the five University of Massachusetts campuses, to improve collaboration on fundraising and facilitate that process. He also led an executive team of representatives that determined the selection of marketing firms that will provide the University of Massachusetts with a unified and updated branding strategy. Dr. Motley's responsibilities in the President's Office also included building external relationships with K-12 specialists and higher education policy leaders, locally and federally; creating relationships with corporations; and working with functional networks such as associations. He was the designee to the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education Blue Ribbon Task Force on Student Financial Aid and the American Council on Education (ACE) Solutions for the Future Project. Dr. Motley also served on the Boston Foundation's Steering Committee for the Carol G. Goldberg Seminar on Higher Education-Community Partnerships, The Role and Impact of Colleges and Universities in Greater Boston Today. A founder of the Roxbury Preparatory Charter School and chair emeritus of the school's Board of Trustees, Dr. Motley serves as the immediate past chair of the Board of Trustees of Newbury College in Brookline. He also serves on numerous boards of community organizations, including the American Red Cross of Eastern Massachusetts, Freedom House, Morgan Memorial Goodwill Industries, Inc., the United Way of Massachusetts Bay, ACCESS, the Boston Private Industry Council and the Dimock Community Health Center. He is the founder and education chair of Concerned Black Men of Massachusetts, Inc., and the Paul Robeson Institute for Positive Self-Development. Dr. Motley also chairs the Boston Committee Initiative's Do the Write Thing Challenge of the National Campaign to Stop Violence. He is a member of Iota Phi Theta fraternity and Sigma Pi Phi fraternity Beta Beta Boule. J. Keith Motley holds bachelor's and master's degrees from Northeastern University and a doctorate from Boston College. He is a proud graduate of the University of Pittsburgh's Upward Bound Program. He is married to Angela Motley and is the father of Keith Jr., Kayla, and Jordan.