Christine (Chris) Harrison is a third-grade teacher in the Richland-Bean Blossom Community School Corporation. Prior to teaching third grade, Chris was an elementary school librarian for Brown County Schools, Mineral Point Unified School District in Wisconsin, and Richland-Bean Blossom. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Indiana University as well as a Masters of Library Science. Chris is married with three daughters, a step-daughter, a step-son, and two adorable grandsons.

Jaime Burkhart is a teacher in the Monroe County Community School Corporation (MCCSC). She has a Masters of Library Science and a Masters of Elementary Education, both from Indiana University. She has also worked as a school librarian. Jaime is married with 3 children. She teaches English language learners in her spare time.

Kari Esarey is the instructional coach at Binford Elementary.  She has been in the MCCSC school corporation since 1985 in such positions as an administrator, classroom teacher, literacy coach, and title one reading teacher.  Kari volunteers leading a monthly women's bible study and serves on the church council as well as plays the french horn.  She has been an active member of Bread for the World since 1985, actively organizing letter writing offerings yearly to various senators and representatives.  Kari is married to David Esarey and has three adult children, all in education.

David Ferguson, a Bloomington native living only 25 miles from where his ancestors settled in 1816, has worked just down the street from MCPL since graduating from IU Law School in 1981.  He and his wife Tyler Kate enjoy working on their 1920's home, travel, and cycling (the KT Trail in Missouri especially).  David also enjoys working on bikes, taking Tyler's yoga classes and he looks forward to playing recreational soccer with his old(er) friends once the pandemic is over.

Katherine (Kathy) Loser was a school librarian at Bloomington High School North for over 30 years  in the Monroe County Community School Corporation (MCCSC). Kathy also worked at MCPL as a Children’s Library Technician and as a summer Children’s librarian. She met her husband Duane Busick while they were working on Kids Alive during winter of 1975, at the TV station channel 7, which is now CATS at Monroe County Public Library.

Fred Risinger taught history/social studies and coached cross country, basketball, and track at a Chicago suburban high school before joining the IU School of Education in 1973. He was a co-author of four high school history textbooks. He was elected (in Illinois, library board members are elected) to a city library board and served as president while there.  While growing up in southern Illinois, he spent hours in the local public library and helped in re-shelving the books.

Nichelle Whitney Wash is a diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) consultant who has worked in a number of different roles in higher education, healthcare, and the nonprofit sector. She holds a BS in Human Biology from Indiana University Bloomington, and is founder of The Guarden, LLC.