Author
Angela Joy was born and raised in Minneapolis before graduating Summa Cum Laude from the University of Minnesota. She has been a background vocalist on television and movie soundtracks and likes to write lyrical poetry for children. Her books focus on African American history and culture.
Author
Brandon Mull is a New York Times Best-Selling Author of nearly 30 books, including Fablehaven and Beyonders. Brandon graduated from Brigham Young University in 2000, and immediately started working on his first full-length novel. Interestingly though, it was not the novel that got him his first publishing deal. That honor would go to Fablehaven. Now, he spends many hours a day writing, but he enjoys every minute of it, because he is doing what he loves.
Illustrator
Guy Francis has illustrated over a dozen books. He spends his time drawing, painting, and drawing some more! Guy was born and raised in Provo, Utah, where he attended Brigham Young University. In school, his teachers would often let him stay in at recess to work on projects, and his grade-school friends would exchange part of their lunch for his drawings. He is thrilled to make a living doing what he loves!
Author
John Schu has made a career out of advocating for the people and things he cares about most: kids, books, and the people who connect them. He is the children’s librarian for Bookelicious and the author of This Is a School (Candlewick, 2022) illustrated by Veronica Miller Jamison, This Is a Story (Candlewick, 2023) illustrated by Caldecott Honor artist Lauren Castillo, Louder Than Hunger (Candlewick, 2024), Louder Than Hunger (Candlewick, 2024) and The Gift of Story: Exploring the Affective Side of the Reading Life (Stenhouse, 2022). John Schu lives in Naperville, Illinois
UVU President
In 2018, following a rich and storied career in business, philanthropy, and academia, Dr. Astrid S. Tuminez became the seventh president of Utah Valley University. She is the first woman to serve on a full-time basis as UVU president. Raised in the slums of the Philippines, Tuminez rose to become a world leader in the fields of technology and political science, most recently serving as an executive at Microsoft. She is also the former vice dean of research and assistant dean of executive education at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore.
