Project Board
-

Diane Del Signore
Executive Director,
New Literary Project -

Joe Di Prisco
Chair, Author & Educator
-

Shanti Ariker
Chief Legal Officer, JFrog; Writer
-

James Bell
Founder & Chairman, Bell Investment Advisors; Community Leader
-

Uttara C. Chaudhuri
PhD Candidate, University of California, Berkeley, English Department; Creative Writing Teacher
-

Laura Cogan
Editor and Consultant
-

Ian Duncan
Distinguished Professor and Florence Green Bixby Chair, Department of English, University of California, Berkeley
-

Ben Fountain
Author
-

Manuel Muñoz
Author, Professor of English, University of Arizona
-

John Murray
Author and Associate Professor (Teaching), University of Southern California
-

Joyce Carol Oates
(Honorary) Author and Professor of Humanities, Princeton University
-

Pat Scott
Public Radio and Nonprofit Executive
-

Frank Starn
Community Leader and Corporate Executive
-

Elisa Tamarkin
Chair, Department of English
Katharine Bixby Hotchkis Professor of English, University of California, Berkeley -

David Wood
Community Leader and Public High School English Teacher, Northgate High School
Board Emeritus
Eric Falci
English Department Chair & Professor, UC Berkeley
Donald McQuade
English Professor Emeritus; Vice Chancellor Emeritus, UC Berkeley
Beth Needel
Executive Director, Lafayette Library and Learning Center Foundation
Genaro Padilla
Chair Emeritus, English Department; Vice Chancellor Emeritus, UC Berkeley
Mike Ross
Author, U.S. & International Law School & University Lecturer
Project Team
-

Diane Del Signore
Executive Director
-

Vanessa Merina
Incoming Executive Director
-

Vicky Chong
Special Correspondent UK + Malaysia
-

Tyson Cornell
Publicist & Publicity
-

Josephine Courant
Digital Design
-

Abby Donahue
Project Manager
-

Regan McMahon
Project Consultant
-

Fox Nakai
Filmmaker
-

Hannah Onstad
Communications Director
-

Kristina Sepetys
Chief Evangelist
-

Christina Shih
Finance Manager
-

Mary Trunk
Filmmaker, Assistant Professor of Film, Mount Saint Mary’s University
Jack Hazard Fellowship Team
-

Bea Chang
2026 Jack Hazard Fellow
The Bush School, Seattle, WA -

Emily Cinquemani
2026 Jack Hazard Fellow
SC Governor’s School for the Arts & Humanities
Greenville, SC -

Ambalila Hemsell
2026 Jack Hazard Fellow
Annie Wright Schools, Tacoma, WA -

James Klise
2026 Jack Hazard Fellow
CICS Northtown Academy, Chicago, IL -

Luisa Muradyan
2026 Jack Hazard Fellow
Pembroke Hills School, Kansas City, MO -

Brittany Rogers
2026 Jack Hazard Fellow Cass Technical High School, Detroit, MI
-

Nicole Lozano Simonsen
2026 Jack Hazard Fellow School of Engineering & Sciences, Sacramento, CA
Bonetti-Bell Fellowship Team
-

Fiona McFarlane
Bonetti-Bell Fellowship Program Director
-

Uttara C. Chaudhuri
2023-2026 Bonetti-Bell Fellow Girls Inc. of Alameda County
-

Edil Hassan
2025-2026 Bonetti-Bell Fellow
Girls Inc. of Alameda County -

Drew V. Kiser
2025-2026 Bonetti-Bell Fellow
Mt. McKinley High School -

Ryan Lackey
2023-2026 Bonetti-Bell Fellow Northgate High School
-

Julian Robles
2026 Bonetti-Bell Fellow
Albany High School
Starn Fellowship Team
-

Chris Feliciano Arnold
Starn Fellowship Program Director
-

Damneet Kaur
2026 Starn Fellow
-

Lucas Maas
2026 Starn Fellow Hope Solutions
-

Ana Tuazon
2026 Starn Fellow
-

Rose Wong
2026 Starn Fellow
-

Anne Williston
2026 Starn Fellow
-

Rayjon Briscoe Young
2025-2026 Starn Fellow Emery High School
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