Sandra J. Briggs is in charge of the ESL Program at Burlingame High School in San Mateo High School District in San Mateo, California. She has students from many different countries and language backgrounds, and her work draws on her extensive experience with literacy students. She is coauthor of several ESL books published by Scott Foresman (now Pearson Education) including Grammar: Strategies and Practice, as well as of several Spanish programs, including Churros y Chocolate and Plazas y Paisajes. She is active in TESOL and has recently served on its board.

Ms. Briggs has master's degrees in teaching (Johns Hopkins University), English with an emphasis in ESL (San Francisco State University), and linguistics (Stanford University).

Karen Davy has taught English in San Juan, Puerto Rico, as well as in Paris, France. After having held senior editorial positions at various English-language-teaching publishers (including Longman) she became a freelance writer and editor in the early 1980s. Ms. Davy has edited, authored, and co-authored many successful ESL, Spanish, and French texts.

Barbara R. Denman is Coordinator of Refugee Programs with the Prince George’s County Adult Education Program, Prince George’s County, Maryland. Previously, she taught EFL methodology at the post-secondary level in Rabat, Morocco. She has also taught ESL for the Arlington, Virginia, Public Schools and at the University of Texas Reading and Study Skills Center.

Ms. Denman holds a B.A. in Linguistics from the University of Michigan and an M.A. in Teaching English as a Foreign Language from the University of Texas at Austin.

Mayra Menéndez was Coordinator of the ESOL Program in the Multicultural Education Department, Broward County Public Schools, Florida. Ms. Menéndez has worked in the field of ESL education, having taught ESOL in Rhode Island before moving to Florida.

Ms. Menéndez has an educational specialist’s degree in Specific Learning Disabilities and a master’s degree in Administration and Supervision from Nova University, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and a bachelor’s degree in Elementary/Early Childhood Education from Rhode Island College in Providence, Rhode Island.

Diane Pinkley is the Director of the TC TESOL Certificate Program at Teachers College, Columbia University, in New York City. She holds a B.A. from Avila College, Kansas City, Missouri, and an M.A. in English language and literature from the University of Michigan. She is currently pursuing studies leading to an Ed.D. in TESOL at Teachers College, Columbia University.

Ms. Pinkley worked as Curriculum Coordinator at the Michigan Language Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan, as well as instructor and Director of Courses at the Institute of North American Studies in Barcelona, Spain. She has taught American and British literature and American culture, and all levels of EFL/ESL.

James E. Purpura is Assistant Professor of Linguistics and Education in the TESOL and Applied Linguistics programs at Teachers College, Columbia University, in New York City. He holds a Ph.D. in TESL/Applied Linguistics from the University of California at Los Angeles.

Dr. Purpura worked at the Institute of North American Studies, Barcelona, Spain, from 1982 to 1990, first as an instructor, then as Director of Courses. In addition, he has taught in France, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait. He has also worked as a curriculum specialist in Iran, Saudi Arabia, and San Diego, California, and was involved in curriculum development at Kuwait University. His scholarly publications appear in Language Learning, Language Testing, and Issues in Applied Linguistics.

Jane Sturtevant is a writer and editor of ESL/EFL materials who lives and works in New York City. She has taught at the City University of New York, Columbia University, and New York University. She lived and taught for many years in Mexico and also in Ghana, West Africa.

Ms. Sturtevant has a B.A. in English from William Smith College and an M.S. in Education from the State University of New York at Albany.