Judith E. Kalb earned a BA in Slavic Languages and Literatures at Princeton University and a joint PhD in Slavic Languages and Literatures and Humanities at Stanford University. Dr. Kalb’s research focuses on the interactions between Russian culture and the Greco-Roman classical tradition. Her book Russia’s Rome: Imperial Visions, Messianic Dreams, 1890-1930, examines the image of ancient Rome in the writings of Russian modernists. Her new project focuses on Russia’s reception of Homer. An award-winning teacher, Dr. Kalb enjoys introducing students to the incredible world of Russian culture and the larger European literary tradition of which it forms a part.

Sara Fitzgerald is a former Washington Post editor who combines her love of writing and history to tell the compelling stories of little-known women. Her latest book, "The Silenced Muse: Emily Hale, T. S. Eliot, and the Role of a Lifetime," is the first full-length biography of Emily Hale, the American actress and college professor who was Eliot's first love and longtime confidante. Her other books include "Elly Peterson: 'Mother' of the Moderates" (2011), which was recognized as a 2012 Book of the Year by the Library of Michigan and by the Historical Society of Michigan; "Conquering Heroines: How Women Fought Sex Bias at Michigan and Paved the Way for Title IX" (2020); and The Poet's Girl (2020), a novel about Emily Hale. Fitzgerald majored in history and journalism at the University of Michigan and was the first woman to serve as editor-in-chief of The Michigan Daily. She lives in Northern Virginia.