Other People's English: Code-Meshing, Code-Switching, and African American Literacy

Vershawn Ashanti Young is a scholar, writer, and performance artist who specializes in four areas of African American studies: language, literature, masculinity, and performance. He values collaborative academic work and in recent years has published with Frankie Condon a special issue of Across the Disciplines: "Anti-Racist Activism: Teaching Rhetoric and Writing" (2013); with Julie Naviaux, "Snap!: The Marlon Riggs Bibliography" (African American Review, 2012); with Bridget Harris Tsemo, From Bourgeois to Boojie: Black Middle-Class Performances (2011); and with Aja Martinez, Code-Meshing as World English: Pedagogy, Policy, Performance (2011).

Rusty Barrett is an associate professor in the linguistics program and the English department at the University of Kentucky where he teaches courses in general linguistics, sociolinguistics, and linguistic anthropology. His research focuses on the highland Mayan languages of Guatemala, language revitalization, and language and sexuality, gender, and ethnicity. He is co-author (with Jung-Tae Kim) of Classroom English in Use (2011). He is the author of From Drag Queens to Leathermen: Language, Gender, and Gay Male Subcultures (Oxford UP, 2017).

Y'Shanda Young-Rivera is an independent educational consultant based out of Chicago. She holds an MEd from Loyola University Chicago and a BA in Elementary Education from Northeastern Illinois University. Y'Shanda has held numerous positions within the Chicago Public Schools: classroom teacher, associate principal, and dean of students. She has over 20 years of teaching and administrative experience in both secular and nonsecular/nonprofit sectors. She specializes in education in urban settings.