Marie Arana & Zeke Hernandez - Breaking Myths: The Diversity and Economic Impact of Immigration in America

With immigration policy so much in the news, join Marie Arana and Zeke Hernandez as they discuss the many facets of this front-and-center issue. In LatinoLand, columnist and literary director of the Library of Congress Marie Arana explores the rich diversity of Hispanic America, debunking stereotypes and celebrating a fast-growing community shaping the nation’s future. Wharton professor Zeke Hernandez dismantles myths with 20 years of research, proving that immigrants fuel jobs, innovation and economic growth, in The Truth About Immigration.

 

Marie Arana was born in Lima, Peru. She is the author of the memoir American Chica, a finalist for the National Book Award; two novels, Cellophane and Lima Nights; the prizewinning biography Bolivar: Silver, Sword, and Stone, a narrative history of Latin America; The Writing Life, a collection from her well-known column for the Washington Post; and LatinoLand. Ms. Arana is the inaugural literary director of the Library of Congress and lives in Washington, DC, and Lima. Latinoland was named one of the "50 notable works of nonfiction from 2024" by the Washington Post. Photo Credit - Frank Schramm - Website

 

Zeke Hernandez is the Max and Bernice Garchik Family Presidential Associate Professor at the Wharton School. His pioneering research linking immigration to investment and economic growth has won multiple prizes, including an unprecedented three emerging scholar awards from the top academic associations in his field. Dr. Hernandez is one of the highest-rated teachers at Wharton, one of Poets & Quants world's best 40 under 40 business professors, and one of the youngest recipients of a presidential professorship at the University of Pennsylvania. He loves his family, soccer and meeting people from all over the world. Photo Credit - Tommy Leonardi - Website • @profzeke (all platforms)

 

Moderator: John Beed is the chief partnership officer for LifeRamp, a global digital coaching and talent development company providing transformational leadership and career coaching for thousands of young and diverse professionals. A former U.S. diplomat who led innovative international development and global health programs in ten countries on five continents, Mr. Beed served as a three-time USAID mission director (India, Guatemala, Paraguay), and as the senior U.S. development counselor in Japan. He is a former faculty member of the National Defense University, and Congressional staff member. He is a Tulane University graduate and lives in Annapolis with his wife Christine. Linkedin

Melissa Deckman & Jim Zervanos - Gen Z Rising: A Generation of Hope, Resilience and Influence

Gen Z is the most diverse generation in American history, with a strong emphasis on individuality and self-expression as well as a dedication to social and political issues. In The Politics of Gen Z, Melissa Deckman, chief executive officer of the Public Religion Research Institute, examines how young activists—especially women and LGBTQ+ youth—are driving progressive change, from reproductive rights to climate action. High school teacher Jim Zervanos captures a year in the lives of Gen Z students in Your Story Starts Here, which chronicles their struggles and resilience and offers an intimate look at a generation navigating uncertainty—and inspiring hope.

 

Melissa Deckman is the chief executive officer of the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI).  Prior to her appointment as PRRI’s CEO, Dr. Deckman was the Louis L. Goldstein Professor of Public Affairs and political science professor at Washington College. She is the author or co-author of seven books and two dozen peer-reviewed scholarly articles, including Tea Party Women (2016: NYU Press), which examines the role of women in conservative politics.  Her first book, School Board Battles: The Christian Right in Local Politics, won the American Political Science Association’s Hu Morken Award for best book on religion and politics. Along with Julie Dolan and Michele Swers, Dr. Deckman is also the author of Women and Politics, a top-selling textbook on gender politics in the United States, now in its updated fifth edition. Her latest book is The Politics of Gen Z: How the Youngest Voters Will Shape Our Democracy. Website • @melissadeckman (Bluesky)

Jim Zervanos is the author of two memoirs, That Time I Got Cancer: A Love Story and Your Story Starts Here: A Year on the Brink with Generation Z, and two novels, LOVE Park and American Gyro (2025). He is a graduate of the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College and Bucknell University, where he was an Academic All-American baseball player. He teaches at a high school in the suburbs of Philadelphia, where he lives with his wife and two sons and has risen in the baseball pantheon as coach of two Little League teams.Your Story Starts Here: A Year on the Brink with Generation Z won Indies Today Best Memoir of 2024 while "The Zeitgeist" chapter is nominated for a prestigious Pushcart Prize. Photo Credit - Dave Berk - Website

 

 

Moderator: Maryland State Delegate Dana Jones. 

Keith Boykin & Nikole Hannah-Jones - History, Race and the Truth: Examining America’s Story

Join an increasingly important discussion about race in America. In Why Does Everything Have to Be About Race?, TV and film producer, national political commentator, and former White House aide to President Bill Clinton, Keith Boykin debunks 25 of the most common claims used to refute America’s racist past and present. Nikole Hannah-Jones, the Pulitzer Prize-winning creator of the 1619 Project and a staff writer at the New York Times Magazine will be talking about her book as well as the six-part 1619 Project docuseries which won the Emmy for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series.

Keith Boykin is an American TV and film producer, national political commentator, author, and former White House aide to President Bill Clinton. His most recent book is Why Does Everything Have to Be About Race.

 

 

Nikole Hannah-Jones is the Pulitzer Prize-winning creator of the 1619 Project and a staff writer at the New York Times Magazine. The book version of The 1619 Project as well as the 1619 Project children's book, Born on the Water, were instant #1 New York Times bestsellers. Her 1619 Project is now a six-part docuseries on Hulu and won the Emmy for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series. Ms. Hannah-Jones has spent her career investigating racial inequality and injustice, and her reporting has earned her the MacArthur Fellowship, known as the Genius grant, a Peabody Award, two George Polk Awards, and the National Magazine Award three times. Photo Credit - Regina Fleming - @nikolehannahjones (Instagram)

 

 

Moderator: Candace Dodson-Reed is a chief of staff and strategic leader who brings over twenty-five years of cross-sector experience—spanning government, corporate, nonprofit, and higher education—with a focus on driving inclusive leadership, organizational strategy and impactful community engagement. Her professional, political, philanthropic, and creative efforts are deeply connected—each rooted in a belief that real change happens at the intersection of strategy, service and storytelling.Outside of work, Ms. Dodson-Reed explores the world through photography and art, capturing the beauty and diversity of both built and natural environments. 

 

Anna Bright & Brigid Kemmerer - Romantasy Realms: Weaving Tales of Love and Magic

Romantasy is having a well-earned moment. Join up-and-coming writer Anna Bright (The Hedgewitch of Foxhall) and bestselling author Brigid Kemmerer (Carving Shadows into Gold & Forging Silver into Stars) as they discuss the romance, magic, darkness, and fantasy worlds of the fast-growing genre of romantasy.

 

 

Anna Bright is the author of Young Adult novels The Beholder, The Boundless, The Song That Moves the Sun, and The Hedgewitch of Foxhall. When not writing, she loves concerts, roller coasters and adventures at home and abroad. Ms. Bright lives with her family in a charming corner of Washington, DC. Website • @brightlyanna (Instagram)

 

 

Brigid Kemmerer is the New York Times bestselling author of more than a dozen dark and alluring novels like Defy the Night, A Curse So Dark and Lonely, and Letters to the Lost. Her stories always feature complex characters facing the challenges of life, both in realistic settings and rich fantasy worlds, making her a beloved author among young adult readers. A full-time writer, Ms. Kemmerer lives in the Baltimore area with her husband, her boys and her dog and cats. When she’s not writing or being a mommy, you can usually find her with her hands wrapped around a barbell. Website • @ BrigidKemmerer (Instagram, TikTok)

 

 

Moderator: Maggie Nespole, currently based out of Portland, ME, is a graduate of Bates College where she double majored in English and politics with a minor in theater. During her time in undergrad, she completed a semester-long research thesis examining the role of the heroine in modern fantasy literature. Ms. Nespole works for UNUM Insurance and is returning to school to pursue a juris doctor degree. She is a Key School Class of 2019 alum.  maggie_nespole (Instagram)

David K. Shipler - The Interpreter

Join David K. Shipler, Pulitzer Prize-winning author and former New York Times correspondent in Saigon, Moscow, Jerusalem, and Washington, as he discusses his novel The Interpreter. Based on the true story of a Vietnamese translator who struggles to find his place within the neat categories of allegiance imposed by Vietnam’s lifetime of warfare and foreign occupation. As he realizes he fits into none of the available boxes—not Communist, not Government, not pro-American—he tries to interpret Vietnam through an evolving comradeship with an American correspondent. Betrayals and secrets ensue within the whirlwind of panic as Saigon falls.

 

 

 

 

David K. Shipler is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author of nine books and a former New York Times correspondent in Saigon, Moscow, Jerusalem, and Washington. He was executive producer, writer and narrator of two PBS documentaries on the Arab-Israeli conflict. He has taught at Princeton, Dartmouth, American University, and the University of Southern California. His book of poetry, The Wind is Invisible, was published in 2023. His latest book, The Interpreter, is a novel set at the end of the Vietnam War, fifty years ago. He writes online at the Shipler Report and co-hosts a podcast, “Two Reporters.” Photo Credit: Michael Shipler - Blog

 

Moderator:  Robert McCarthy, Key School Humanities teacher.

Vanda Krefft & Grace L. Williams - Expecting More: Breaking Barriers in a Man’s World

Join this galvanizing discussion of women taking charge and taking what they deem as their just due. Author Vanda Krefft in Expect Great Things!: How the Katharine Gibbs School Revolutionized the American Workplace for Women writes of how the school instilled the self-confidence and strategic know-how necessary for them to claim equality, power, and authority in the wider world. Financial reporter Grace L. Williams’s book Give Her Credit: The Untold Account of a Women's Bank That Empowered a Generation tells the true story of a group of women in the 1970s male-run world of business, banking and finance who changed the rules and made history.

 

Vanda Krefft has written about women’s issues and popular culture for leading national magazines, including Elle, Redbook, Woman’s Day, and Woman’s World, as well as newspapers worldwide through syndication. She is the author of The Man Who Made the Movies, the first in-depth biography of Twentieth Century Fox founder William Fox. She has a B.A. in English and an M.A. in communication, both from the University of Pennsylvania, and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. Website

 

 

Grace L. Williams is a scholar of feminism and economics who moonlights as a financial reporter and podcast co-host. Whether it's shares of a company or this season's must-have, she is passionate about what we’re buying, why we’re buying it, and how it contributes to many a bottom line. Ms. Williams is an alum of the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, where ironically she wrote a thesis on “Freeganism,” which is the magical art of surviving while buying nothing. Her writing has been featured in Forbes, the Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, Harvard Business Review, Yahoo Finance, Stephens, Financial Advisor IQ, and RIA Intel, among many others. @theshescribe (All platforms)

 

Moderator: Dana Cooksey is a partner at Brown Advisory and serves as the firm's director of corporate communications. She is responsible for creating content and experiences that convey the firm's client-first foundation, cultural DNA and dedication to thoughtful investing—including the firm's flagship Navigating Our World conferences, which explore the issues that we face as investors and as a society. In the community, Ms. Cooksey serves on the board of Rise and Shine Bakery. Most importantly, she is the proud mom of two daughters who are both Key School lifers. 

Atossa Araxia Abrahamian & Anne Kim - How the Rich Get Richer: Forces Behind Economic Inequality

Join Atossa Araxia Abrahamian and Anne Kim for a compelling discussion on the systems and policies that perpetuate wealth disparities. Journalist Atossa Araxia Abrahamian’s The Hidden Globe reveals a hidden world beyond national borders—thousands of extraterritorial zones designed to serve the wealthiest individuals and corporations. The Hidden Globe was named a top ten book of 2024 by the Washington Post.  Poverty for Profit by public policy expert Anne Kim exposes how a vast network of private industries thrives on the bureaucracies meant to aid low-income Americans.

 

Atossa Araxia Abrahamian is a journalist and author living in Brooklyn. She is the author of The Cosmopolites: The Coming of the Global Citizen and The Hidden Globe: How Wealth Hacks the World, named one of the Washington Post's top 10 books of 2024. She has worked as an editor at The Nation, an opinion editor at Al Jazeera America, and a reporter for Reuters. Website • @atossaaraxia (X and Instagram)

 

Anne Kim is a writer, lawyer and public policy expert who writes about social and economic policy, poverty and education. She is also a contributing editor at Washington Monthly, and her work has appeared in numerous national publications, including Governing, the Atlantic and the Washington Post. Ms. Kim is the author of Abandoned: America’s Lost Youth and the Crisis of Disconnection, winner of the 2020 Goddard Riverside Stephan Russo Book Prize for Social Justice. Website • @anne-s-kim.bsky.social (bluesky) • LinkedIn

 

Moderator: Julius Clark is a vice president of market risk at Morgan Stanley.  His area of specialization is private equity.  Prior to joining Morgan Stanley, he was a principal portfolio manager at the World Bank. Mr. Clark earned a B.A. in economics from Howard University and a M.A. in international relations and economics from Johns Hopkins University. He has been married to Cynthia Clark for twenty-seven years and they have three children who are Key School students. He currently serves on the Board of Trustees at the Key School.

John W. Miller - The Last Manager: How Earl Weaver Tricked, Tormented, and Reinvented Baseball

John W. Miller, writer, baseball coach and co-director of the PBS documentary Moundsville tells the fascinating tale of  Earl Weaver, the irascible, legendary manager of the Baltimore Orioles. This is the first major biography of Weaver, who reigned over baseball as one of the sport’s greatest minds, collecting and analyzing data in visionary and ground-breaking ways.

 

 

 

 

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John W. Miller is a writer and baseball coach from Brussels, and author of the New York Times bestseller The Last Manager, and co-director of the PBS documentary Moundsville. He was a global correspondent for the Wall Street Journal for thirteen years, and his work has also appeared in TIME, NPR, the Baltimore Sun, and the Washington Post. He is a contributing writer for America Magazine and chief economic analyst for Trade Data Monitor, and lives in Pittsburgh, where he is head baseball coach at Allderdice High School. Website

 

Moderator: Gary Gallant is a lifelong Philadelphia Phillies fan and baseball expert who worked for the team in 1986 and later served as a lobbyist for the MLB Players Association, advising during the performance-enhancing drug investigation. He coached youth recreation and travel baseball teams for over fifteen years and, since 2018, has been the head coach of Key School’s varsity baseball program, a competitive high school team that won conference championships in 2022 and 2023.

Maxwell L. Stearns - Parliamentary America: The Least Radical Means of Radically Repairing Our Broken Democracy

Maxwell L. Stearns teaches constitutional law and economic analysis of law at the University of Maryland Carey School of Law. In Parliamentary America, Professor Stearns argues that the United States’ eighteenth-century political system is ill-equipped for the challenges of the twenty-first century. The rise of information-age technology and gerrymandering has turned democracy upside down, undermining our ability to address common problems. He suggests that a parliamentary democracy is the solution to this crisis.

 

 

 

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Maxwell L. Stearns teaches constitutional law and economic analysis of law at the University of Maryland Carey School of Law. He is an interdisciplinary scholar who applies social choice theory and game theory to study institutional decision making, including the Supreme Court. In Parliamentary America: The Least Radical Means of Radically Repairing Our Broken Democracy (JHU Press 2024), Professor Stearns explains the crisis of democracy we are facing in the United States, and he offers a bold yet achievable solution. He has presented his work before dozens of audiences across the United States. His many publications appear in leading academic journals. @maxwell-stearns.bsky.social (Bluesky) • @Maxwell_Stearns (X) •  Blog

 

 

 

Moderator: Judge Danielle M. Mosley

Craig Kofi Farmer,Jimin Han & Maurice Carlos Ruffin - Windows & Mirrors: The Power of Representation in Literature

Books have the power to be both windows—offering glimpses into experiences different from our own—and mirrors—reflecting our identities, cultures and lived realities. In this thought-provoking discussion, authors Jimin Han, Craig Kofi Farmer and Maurice Carlos Ruffin explore how literature shapes our understanding of the world, fosters empathy and affirms identity. They will discuss why diverse stories matter and how they create a more just and connected literary landscape.

 

 

Craig Kofi Farmer is a Prince George's County native, with two bachelor of science degrees from Towson University and one master of education degree from the University of Maryland, College Park. He works in higher education administration, helping students achieve work-life balance and self-actualization. When Mr. Farmer isn’t writing, he's analyzing superhero movies, watching psychological thrillers, and deciding exactly what he's going to eat that day. @State_Farmm (X) • @craigkofifarmer (Instagram) • @craigkofifarmer (TikTok)

 

 

Jimin Han is the author of The Apology, a Barnes and Noble Discover Pick; named a best audiobook of the year by Booklist, a best book of the summer by the Los Angeles Times, Vanity Fair, Shondaland, Apple Books, and more. She is also the author of A Small Revolution. Ms. Han teaches at the Writing Institute at Sarah Lawrence College and community writing centers. Born in Seoul, she grew up in Providence, RI, Dayton, OH, and Jamestown, NY. Photo Credit - Christine Petrella - Website • @jiminhanwriter (instagram & TikTok)

 

 

Maurice Carlos Ruffin is the author of the national bestseller, The American Daughters, as well as The Ones Who Don’t Say They Love You, a One Book One New Orleans selection, which was longlisted for the Story Prize. His debut, We Cast a Shadow, was a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, and the PEN America Open Book Prize. All three books were New York Times Editor’s Choice selections. Mr. Ruffin is the winner of the Iowa Review Award in fiction and the Louisiana Writer Award. He is an associate professor of creative writing at Louisiana State University. Website • @mauriceruffin 

 

 

 

Moderator: Vanessa Gutierrez is the director of DEIB at Key School in Annapolis, MD. With a passion for justice, her goal is to inspire her community to collectively dream about what is possible of an equitable and inclusive school in which each member feels a deep sense of belonging. She has worked in education since 2002, transforming places and spaces into better versions of themselves. Known for her free spirit and humor, Ms. Gutierrez is dedicated to change while not taking herself too seriously.

 

Moderator: Laurel Lennon is passionate about the importance of reading and access to information, developing curriculum and sharing ideas about learning. Throughout her career, she has been dedicated to ensuring equity in education. Engaged in DEIB work, Ms. Lennon strives to create inclusive learning environments that support critical thinking. Connecting with students, colleagues and families is central to her approach, as she believes collaboration leads to the best practices in education. When she’s not working, she cherishes time with her family and continuously seeks ways to grow and inspire others in the pursuit of meaningful learning experiences.

 

Ryan Hampton & Patricia Roos - When Policy Fails: The Toll of the Overdose Epidemic

This policy discussion will cover how the U.S. deals with the overdose epidemic from the country-wide level to the family level. In Surviving Alex: A Mother’s Story of Love, Loss, and Addiction, Patricia Roos, professor emerita of sociology at Rutgers University, explores how a punitive system failed her son and calls for a community of action that would improve care for substance users and reduce addiction, realigning public health policy to address the overdose crisis. Recovery advocate Ryan Hampton, in Fentanyl Nation, argues that instead of more police, more incarceration and harsher penalties for those caught in the addiction cycle, the U.S. should invest in education, harm reduction and  effective treatment. 

 

Ryan Hampton is a national addiction recovery advocate, author, media commentator, and person in long-term recovery. He has worked with multiple non-profits nationwide to end overdose and served in leadership capacities for various community organizing initiatives. Mr. Hampton is in recovery from a decade of active opioid use and is a leading voice in America's rising recovery movement. He is the author of American Fix, Unsettled and Fentanyl Nation and lives in Nevada with his husband, Sean, and their boxer dog, Quincy. @RyanForRecovery (X) • @ryanjhampton (instagram) • @AddictionXAmerica (Facebook)

 

Patricia Roos is a professor emerita of sociology at Rutgers University. In 2015, she lost her 25-year-old son Alex to a heroin overdose. Her training as a sociologist led her on a quest to better understand what happened to her family. Building on her professional and academic perspectives, she wrote a sociological memoir, Surviving Alex: A Mother's Story of Love, Loss, and Addiction, published May 2024 by Rutgers University Press. Website • roos.p (instagram) • patroos.bsky.social (bluesky)

 

Moderator: Jessie Dunleavy, with firsthand knowledge of the suffering inflicted by the war on drugs, particularly for vulnerable populations, champions policies based on human rights and scientific research and is committed to combating stigma and other impediments to reducing the harms of drug use. Beyond lending her voice through opinion pieces, speaking engagements, broadcast interviews, blogs, and social media, she has joined forces with multiple like-minded groups at the national, state and local levels, and she lobbies for her cause within the Maryland General Assembly. She has a master’s degree in library and information science and lives in her hometown of Annapolis. Website • @jessiedunleavy (X) • @jessiedunleavy.bsky.social (Bluesky) • Jessie Dunleavy (Facebook) • @jess.dunleavy (Instagram)

 

 

Joanne Leedom-Ackerman , Ena Selimović & Katherine E. Young  - The International Political Writer

Exploring themes of artistic freedom, book banning, war, and exile, three local writer-activists read from their latest books and discuss bringing international writers to audiences in America.

 

 

 

 

Joanne Leedom-Ackerman is the author of international political thrillers, including The Far Side of the Desert, Burning Distance, The Dark Path to the River, and short story collection No Marble Angels. Her nonfiction includes PEN Journeys: Memoir of Literature on the Line, and she is senior editor of The Journey of Liu Xiaobo: From Dark Horse to Nobel Laureate. Former reporter for the Christian Science Monitor, Ms. Leedom-Ackerman is vice president of PEN International and serves on the boards of the American Writers Museum and Words Without Borders. Website • Substack 

 

Ena Selimović is a translator, writer and co-founder of Turkoslavia, a translation collective and journal. Her work has appeared in Words Without Borders, the Paris Review, Los Angeles Review of Books, World Literature Today, and others. She holds a Ph.D. in comparative literature from Washington University in St. Louis and is the translator of Maša Kolanović’s novel Underground Barbie, which she will be presenting at the Festival. Ms. Kolanović is the author of the poetry collection Leeches for the Lonely, the prose poem Jamerika, and the short story collection Dear Pests and Other Creepy Stories, which received the 2020 EU Prize for Literature. @enaselimo (X) • @yugaduga (Instagram) • @enaselimo (Bluesky)
 

Katherine E. Young is the author of two poetry collections, Day of the Border Guards and Woman Drinking Absinthe, and editor of Written in Arlington. Her translations of Azerbaijani, Kazakh, Russian, and Ukrainian writers have received international recognition. From 2016-2018, she served as the inaugural poet laureate of Arlington, VA. Ms. Young is the translator of Azerbaijani novelist, playwright, editor, and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Akram Aylisli. She is the translator of Mr. Aylisli’s novel People & Trees, which she will be presenting at the Festival.The publication of Mr. Aylisli’s 2012 novella Stone Dreams led to government-sponsored burnings of all his books in Azerbaijan. Since 2016, he has lived under de facto house arrest in Baku, Azerbaijan. Photo Credit - Samantha H. Collins Website • @katherineeyoung (Bluesky) • Facebook 

 

Moderator: Leeya Mehta is a prize-winning poet, fiction writer and essayist. She is the author of The Towers of Silence and A Story of the World Before the Fence, about which Tim Seibles, former poet laureate of Virginia writes, “is a lush, lyrical study of memory and history.” She is the director of the Alan Cheuse International Writers Center. In 2024 Ms. Mehta received the Faculty Civic Excellence Award for her work within the classroom, and the curation of the thirteen-month-long Baldwin100 project that celebrates the centennial of James Baldwin's contribution to the contemporary imagination: imagining a world that deepens our individual humanity. Website • @leeyamehta on all platforms 

Jefferson Holland & Alison Humphreys  - Adventure Awaits: Exploring Nature in Annapolis and Beyond

Join Jefferson Holland (A Walk Around Arundel) and Alison Humphreys (50 Hikes with Kids Virginia and Maryland) for an inspiring conversation about the natural beauty that surrounds us and the deep connections between people and place. Through their vivid storytelling and passion for the outdoors, these two authors invite you to discover the hidden trails, waterways and wild wonders of the region—while exploring how nature shapes our sense of home, adventure and stewardship.

 

Jefferson Holland, poet laureate of Annapolis, is a modern-day Chesapeake troubadour: singer, songwriter, poet, and storyteller, performing all original material inspired by decades of life on the Bay. He served as the director of the Annapolis Maritime Museum and the riverkeeper for the West and Rhode Rivers. Mr. Holland was a founding member of the band, Them Eastport Oyster Boys. He writes an outdoors column in the Annapolis Capital and has published a collection of essays, Walk Around Arundel, 52 Places to Hike with Your Dog (and Other Best Friends). He lives in Annapolis with his emotional support spouse, Louise White and Millie the wonder retriever. Website

 

Alison Humphreys holds a master's degree in clinical psychology and is a college professor and licensed psychologist in private practice. With her background in psychology and early childhood education, she has made a career of helping individuals and families improve their quality of life and has spoken at several national conventions on the topics of mental health and education. Ms. Humphreys homeschools her four young children, with an emphasis on hands-on, child-led learning and unstructured time in nature. She and her family believe in making the world their classroom. As part-time travelers and full-time adventurers, they opted to run their own businesses so they would have more time to go on adventures, travel and chase sunsets. In addition to taking road trips and exploring nature with her family, Ms. Humphreys enjoys running, reading, photography, and writing. 50hikeswithkids (Instagram) • raisingmavericks (Instagram)

Moderator: Mark Hendricks is an award winning author and photographer. His latest book, The Central Appalachians: Mountains of the Chesapeake (Schiffer Publishing) was released in 2024. His writing and images have appeared in National Geographic, the Guardian, the Washington Post, Audubon, and many others. Mr. Hendricks is a faculty member in the Department of Psychology at Towson University and serves as co-director of the Animal Behavior Program.  He is currently writing a new collection of essays about trees as well as his first film about shark conservationist Captain Mark Sampson. Website • Facebook  

Join Jenny Adams (A Poisonous Silence - A Deadly Twenties Mystery) and Cynthia Pelayo (Vanishing Daughters) for a gripping discussion of the shadowy worlds, twisted characters and spine-tingling suspense that define their work. Explore how they craft tension, blur the lines between reality and nightmare, and keep readers on the edge of their seats.

 

 

Jenny Adams has always had an overactive imagination. She turned her love of books and stories into a career as a librarian and mystery novelist. She holds degrees in medieval studies and library science from the Ohio State University and Drexel University, and currently lives in Alexandria, VA, with her family. Photo Credit - Daria Maidenbaum - Website, @jadamswrites (Instagram, Threads & Bluesky)
 

Cynthia Pelayo is the Bram Stoker Award–winning author of Forgotten Sisters, Children of Chicago, and The Shoemaker’s Magician. In addition to writing genre-blending novels that incorporate fairy-tale, mystery, detective, crime, and horror elements, Ms. Pelayo has written numerous short stories, including the collection Lotería, and the poetry collection Crime Scene. The recipient of the 2021 International Latino Book Award, she holds a master of fine arts in writing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She lives in Chicago with her family. Photo Credit - Magdalena Iskra - Website • Substack • Instagram  
 

Moderator: Valerie Constantine writes with her sister Lynne under the pen name Liv Constantine. They are New York Times and international bestselling authors with over three million copies sold worldwide. Their books are in development for both television and film. Their debut novel The Last Mrs. Parrish was a Reese Witherspoon Book Club selection. Early in her career, Ms. Constantine served as a White House assistant in the President’s Scheduling and Advance Office, planning presidential trips and travel and has visited over forty foreign countries. She graduated from the University of Maryland with a degree in English literature and lives in Annapolis. Website •: livconstantine2 & valerieconstantine47 (Instagram) • (liv constantine & valerie constantine (Facebook)

 

Evan Friss - The Bookshop: A History of the American Bookstore

Best-selling author and history professor Evan Friss explores the rich history of bookstores, from Benjamin Franklin’s first store to legendary shops like the Strand, Gotham Book Mart and Parnassus. This discussion is for anyone who loves bookstores and wants to preserve their future.

 

 

 

 

 

Evan Friss is a professor of history at James Madison University and the New York Times Bestselling author of The Bookshop: A History of the American Bookstore. He lives with his wife (a bookseller) and two children (occasional booksellers) in Harrisonburg, VA. Photo Credit - Joanna Morrissey - @evanfriss (instagram and X)

 

 

 

 

Moderator: Joann Vaughan has a thirty-year career in nonprofit management, but her first job was in her mother’s independent bookstore. After a career in journalism, she served as the inaugural staff member of the Annapolis Book Festival, supporting its activities from 2002-2008. In 2008, she became the executive director of Maryland Federation of Art, a state-wide visual arts nonprofit.  An avid reader, Ms. Vaughn’s literary taste runs from soup to nuts—probably from having to read all the fiction and nonfiction bestsellers so she could make recommendations to customers. While her bookshelves indicate a preference for historical nonfiction and classic children’s books, she also serves on the Holt Medallion Juror Board for the Holt Medallion Award given by the Virginia Romance Writers. 

 

Jimin Han & Rudy Ruiz - Bridges & Borders: The Ghosts of the Family You Inherit

Join authors Jimin Han and Rudy Ruiz for a powerful discussion on family, identity and the past’s enduring grip. In Jimin Han’s The Apology, 105 year old Hak Jeonga enters the afterlife, confronting a family curse triggered by a buried secret. The Apology was chosen as best book of the year by Booklist. In The Border Between Us, award-winning author Ruiz explores ambition, sacrifice and the cost of the American dream.

 

 

Jimin Han is the author of The Apology, a Barnes and Noble Discover Pick; named a best audiobook of the year by Booklist, a best book of the summer by the Los Angeles Times, Vanity Fair, Shondaland, Apple Books, and more. She is also the author of A Small Revolution. Ms. Han teaches at the Writing Institute at Sarah Lawrence College and community writing centers. Born in Seoul, she grew up in Providence, RI, Dayton, OH, and Jamestown, NY. Photo Credit - Christine Petrella - Website • @jiminhanwriter (instagram & TikTok)

 

 

Rudy Ruiz is the author of The Border Between Us, Valley of Shadows and The Resurrection of Fulgencio Ramirez. His fiction work has garnered the Jesse H. Jones Award for Best Book of Fiction, the Gulf Coast Prize in Fiction, and eight International Latino Book Awards. He is a member of PEN America and was inducted into the Texas Institute of Letters. Mr. Ruiz earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Harvard University. He resides in Texas and New England with his wife and children. Mr. Ruiz has been named to the prestigious Joyce Carol Oates Prize long list. Read more about it. Photo Credit - Lorenzo Z. Ruiz - Website • @Rudy_Ruiz_7 (X)

 

Moderator: Heather Webb is the USA Today and international bestselling author of eleven historical novels, including her most recent  Queens of London, The Next Ship Home, and Strangers in the Night. Her up-and-coming novel, The Hope Keeper, about the curse of the Hope Diamond, the last woman who owned it, and the beginnings of women working at the Smithsonian museum, will be released in spring of 2026. An award-winning author, Ms. Webb’s books have been translated to eighteen languages. She lives in New England with her family and two mischievous cats.

In journalist, lifestyle columnist and podcaster Leslie Gray Streeter’s Family and Other Calamities, journalist Dawn Roberts returns to Baltimore with her husband’s ashes and is forced to confront past betrayals, a scandalous exposé casting her as the villain, and the mentor who sold her out. But in the end, she seizes the chance to set the record straight, heal old wounds, and maybe even rekindle a lost love. In best-selling author Jennifer Klepper’s The Last Road Trip, four sorority sisters reunite 20 years after a tragedy to finish a road trip interrupted by betrayal and secrets. As they confront painful truths, they learn the consequences of silence.

 

Jennifer Klepper is the USA Today bestselling author of Unbroken Threads and co-founder of Early Works. Born and raised in Iowa and Nebraska, she attended college in Dallas, law school in Charlottesville, and worked in Texas and Massachusetts before settling for good in Maryland. She's worked for “big law,” small law, start-ups, and Google. Ms. Klepper lives in a forest by a river near Annapolis. Photo Credit - Heather Crowder - Website • Instagram

 

 

Leslie Gray Streeter is a veteran journalist whose debut novel, Family & Other Calamities (Lake Union Publishing) will be released in May. Her memoir Black Widow, was published in March 2020 by Little, Brown and Company. She is the lifestyle columnist for the Baltimore Banner, and the co-host of the pop culture podcast “Fine Beats and Cheeses.” A native of Baltimore, she and her work have been featured in the Washington Post, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Atlantic, the Today Show, SiriusXM, O, The Oprah Magazine, and more. She lives with her son in her hometown of Baltimore. Website • Bluesky • Threads • Linkedin • Instagram • Facebook

 

 

Moderator: Kate Myers is the author of the national bestseller Excavations, which is now being adapted into a series on Peacock starring Amy Poehler. Her writing has appeared in Elle, Self and BuzzFeed and she's worked for CBS Television and CollegeHumor in New York and Los Angeles. Her next novel, Salty, comes out with HarperCollins on June 24. She lives in Annapolis with her husband, daughters and dog. @frontdoorsofannapolis

 

Vicki Valosik - Swimming Pretty: The Untold Story of Women in Water

Meet author and master synchronized swimmer Vicki Valosik for a discussion of her book about  how female swimmers have balanced strength and beauty, athleticism and artistry. In Swimming Pretty, Valosik traces the sport’s evolution from vaudeville spectacles to the Olympic stage, spotlighting the fearless women who defied expectations in and out of the water. Collegiate synchronized swimmer and coach, Swimming Pretty is Ms. Valosik's debut book and was selected as a staff pick for NPR Books We Love 2024 as well as an Amazon Editor’s Pick for Best History Books. The work is also shortlisted for the 2025 Charles Tyrwhitt Sports Book Awards in the category of Women's Sports Writing. 

 

 

 

 

Vicki Valosik is the author of Swimming Pretty: The Untold Story of Women in Water (W.W. Norton, 2024). She is a masters synchronized swimmer and an editorial director at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, where she also teaches graduate-level writing courses. Her writing has appeared in publications such as the Atlantic, Smithsonian Magazine, and Slate. @vickiswims (Instagram ) • @vvalosik (X) • Facebook • Website

 

 

Moderator: Michele Perry-Boucher spent a good part of her childhood wearing noseclips and hanging upside down in pools as a member of the Worcester Synchromaids. She swam in college for the University of Pennsylvania Pennguinettes and then coached for Vassar and UC Davis club teams before hanging up her noseclips. She is a parent of two Key School alum's (2013 and 2017). https://www.facebook.com/Michele.Perry.Boucher/ (Facebook) • @micheleperry28 (Instagram)

 

 

 

Nicole Chung’s A Living Remedy was named a Notable Book by the New York Times and a Best Book of 2023 by over a dozen other outlets, including Time, USA Today, Esquire, Harper's Bazaar, Electric Literature, and TODAY. Her 2018 debut All You Can Ever Know was a national bestseller and a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. Ms. Chung has written for the New York Times Magazine, the Guardian, the Atlantic, Esquire, and many other publications. Born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, she currently lives in the Washington, DC, area. Photo Credit - Carletta Girma - @nicolechung (bluesky) • @nicolesjchung (instagram and X) • Website

 

Katherine Haas was born in 1937 in Germany. Shortly thereafter, her family moved first to Italy, then to China and, when Katherine was eleven, to the United States. Adjusting to new languages and cultures was challenging, and often discouraging. Ms. Haas hopes readers will never be ashamed to be different, as she was. She lives in Maryland with her second husband, Robert Feldmann, who found her as a merry widow in 2014. She spends her retirement having fun learning new languages.

 

Moderator: Ernie Tucker 

 

Bailey Van Tassel - Kitchen Garden Living: Seasonal Growing and Eating from a Beautiful, Bountiful Food Garden

Kitchen gardening is more than just growing food—it’s a lifestyle choice that shows your commitment to health, sustainability and family. Author Bailey Van Tassel of the Kitchen Garden Society will discuss creating your own kitchen garden and involving the whole family in this rewarding, peaceful escape. Whether you have a small space or a large plot, this discussion will inspire you to bring freshness and joy to your life and community.

 

 

 

Bailey Van Tassel is a home gardener, writer and founder of the national gardening club, the Kitchen Garden Society. She helps vegetable gardeners from each US hardiness zone learn how to grow year-round as well as live seasonally and intentionally. Ms. Van Tassel is married with three children and on a mission to make gardening a pastime that families can enjoy together while learning a skill that can be passed down for generations. Photo Credit - Kami Arant Photography - @baileyvantassel (Instagram)

 

Moderator: Hilarey Leonard began her professional career producing television shows for cable networks like Discovery, National Geographic and HGTV. Throughout her life, she had always enjoyed working in hospitality during college and between jobs, so when she met her husband, Brian, they realized they shared a passion for entertaining. They opened their first bar, Lost & Found, in Shaw, DC, in 2014, their second, Free State, in Chinatown, DC, in 2017, and their newest location, Leo restaurant in Annapolis, in 2023. Ms. Leonard handles private and special events, web and social media marketing, and community outreach for the businesses. She is also a sommelier and curates the wine programs at all locations. She is a proud wife and mom and enjoys volunteering and making connections in her community.

 

Larry Tye - The Jazzmen: How Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and Count Basie Transformed America

Larry Tye, author of The Jazzmen will be discussing his fascinating book about jazz legends, Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and Count Basie. The hour will open with musician, Cornelius Young, playing some jazz favorites. Grab a seat and enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

Larry Tye is a New York Times bestselling author. In The Jazzmen: How Duke Ellington, Satchmo Armstrong and Count Basie Transformed America, Mr. Tye examines how these maestros wrote the soundtrack for the civil rights revolution. His previous works include biographies of Satchel Paige, Robert F. Kennedy and Joseph McCarthy. Mr. Tye runs the Harvard-based Health Coverage Fellowship, which helps the media do a better job reporting on critical health-related issues. He has taught journalism at Boston University, Northeastern and Tufts. Website

 

 

Live Music Provided by Cornelius Young, Director of Bands and Music Theory Teacher at Key School

 

 

 

Moderator: Garnet Mowatt, Music & Performing Arts Department Head