Stephanie Smither (1941-2016) was a renowned collector and supporter of folk art. Her extensive collection of artwork by 20th–century self-taught artists has been shown in many museums, including the Museum…

Jeffrey J. Kripal holds the J. Newton Rayzor Chair in Philosophy and Religious Thought at Rice University. He studies contemporary and historical mystics, eroticism and sexuality, the paranormal and the…

Emilee Dawn Whitehurst is the President and CEO of the Houston Area Women's Center. She previously served as executive director of the Rothko Chapel in Houston from 2008 until 2014.…

David Ferris is an associate professor of musicology in the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University. He teaches seminars on the classical style, Mozart, Romantic song, Mendelssohn, Schumann, text…

Patricia Covo Johnson was born in Mexico City where she lived until moving to Houston in 1973.  She earned a BA in art history from the University of California, Santa…

Dr. Eduardo Alemán is an associate professor in the department of political science at the University of Houston. He specializes in the comparative analysis of political institutions and Latin American…

Donna De Cesare is an award-winning journalist and photographer who has lived in Central America and an associate professor, University of Texas school of journalism and media. Through her books…

Dr. John Booth is considered a foremost authority on Central America and has co-authored the two most recent editions of Understanding Central America: Global Forces, Rebellion, and Change (Boulder, CO:…

Alejandro Chaoul is a teacher and practitioner of Tibetan yoga and mind-body techniques. He is the founding director of the Jung Center's Mind Body Center Institute an assistant professor, and…

Martha Serpas is a poet, a professor in the Creative Writing Program at the University of Houston, an advocate for wetland preservation, and a hospital chaplain. Since 2006, she has…