Emily Smith is an assistant professor in the department of emergency medicine/surgery at Duke University and at the Duke Global Health Institute (DGHI). During the COVID-19 pandemic, she also became known as the Friendly Neighbor Epidemiologist through her social media outlets which reached over 3-4 million people per month during 2020-2021.

Before joining the faculty at Duke University, Dr. Smith spent four years at Baylor University in the department of public health and was a research scholar at DGHI for two years. Dr. Smith received her PhD in epidemiology from the Gillings School of Global Public Health at UNC Chapel Hill and a MSPH from the University of South Carolina.

Emily has been married to her pastor-husband for twenty years and they have two fantastic children and one spoiled golden retriever. On any normal day, you can find her outside gardening, reading in the hammock with a good cup of coffee, or trying to become a bird-watcher.

Jeanne Porter King, PhD, is an author, consultant, pastor, and leadership coach specializing in women's leadership. A trusted teacher and guide who has taught leadership at both the undergrad and seminary levels, Dr. Porter King is the founder and president of TransPorter Group Inc., a consulting company focused on leadership development. She is passionate about developing existing and emerging women leaders. Her goal is to encourage and empower more Black women to lead well. She lives in South Holland, Illinois, with her husband, Pastor Carl E. King.

Maria Liu Wong (EdD, Teachers College, Columbia University) is provost of City Seminary of New York, and codirects a major national initiative there, Ministry in the City HUB. She is the coauthor of Stay in the City: How Christian Faith is Flourishing in an Urban World. (Photo credit: Julia Hembree Smith)

Tiffany Eberle Kriner is associate professor of English at Wheaton College. She grew up in the North Country, upstate New York, famous both for its abundant snow and its rich community life. She attended Messiah College for her BA, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison for her MA and PhD. After serving as a Carey Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Notre Dame, she joined the English Department at Wheaton College in Illinois. Her first book, The Future of the Word: An Eschatology of Reading came out in 2014. When Tiffany isn’t teaching and writing, she farms sixty acres of woods and fields with her husband and two children at Root and Sky Farm in rural northern Illinois.

Serena Menken writes books and articles that capture the unique moments of gut-wrenching pain and heartfelt joy experienced by parents of teens with mental health concerns. She counts each day of her three decades of recovery from bulimia as a gift.  However, nurturing her oldest daughter through a similar disorder proved to be even more challenging and ultimately rewarding. You can read more of her reflections on parenting at serenamenken.substack.com and learn about her upcoming book at serenamenken.com. When she’s not writing, Serena works full-time as a nonprofit leader, enjoys her three teenage children, and bikes through forest preserves with her husband.

Veola Vazquez, PhD, is a licensed psychologist and a tenured professor of psychology in the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences at California Baptist University.

Krystal Hays, PhD, is the director of the Doctor of Social Work program and an assistant professor of social work at California Baptist University.

Dr. Chanequa Walker-Barnes is a clinical psychologist and professor of practical theology and pastoral care at Columbia Theological Seminary. Her work focuses upon writing and ministering to clergy and faith-based activists, and supporting women of color engaged in Christian social justice activism. She is the author of I Bring the Voices of My People and Too Heavy a Yoke. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia.