Carissa Finn, a former New York City public school teacher, studied explicit writing instruction under Lucy Calkins as part of the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project Leadership Group.  Following her teaching, Carissa supported Chicago Public School teachers, literacy coaches, principals, and Area Instruction Officers as a literacy coach for the Chicago New Teacher Center (CNTC).  She holds a Bachelor of Journalism from the University of Missouri and a Master of Education from Hunter College in New York City.

Maria Griffith, a literacy coach and staff developer since 2001, has worked closely with Chicago Public School teachers, literacy coaches, principals, and Area Instruction Officers at both The University of Chicago’s Center for Urban School Improvement (now the Urban Education Institute) and with CNTC.  Maria brings eleven years of teaching in Detroit and Chicago Public Schools to her work.  She is an alumna of The University of Michigan and received her Master of Education in Reading and Language Development from Harvard University.