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Dr. Gary Wellbrock is an early elementary educator at a dual-language (American Sign Language and English) school in New York City. He teaches deaf, hard-of-hearing and hearing children from diverse backgrounds. He holds a master's degree from Columbia University Teachers College and later became a licensed reading specialist due, in part, to his work with the Hello Friend Foundation. Gary earned his doctoral degree from the Language, Literacy and Learning program at Fordham University.

Sheila Esshaki is an English and English as a Second Language high school teacher in the metropolitan Detroit area. She has taught in high schools in Caracas, Venezuela; Cairo, Egypt; and Ankara, Turkey. She is a first-generation Arab American who speaks fluent Arabic and understands some of her native Chaldean (Aramaic). Her bicultural background, along with her experiences, give energy to her passion for supporting respect for and celebration of diversity.