Peter Grevstad is a Professor of English and Literary Studies in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, where he teaches Composition and Rhetoric, courses in English literature, and also the first Ontario community college course in Queer Studies, called LGBTQ+ Studies. He has been with Sheridan since 2006. He has a BA and an MA in English from York University, and a PhD in Education from the University of Toronto. This is the Inaugural Pride Reads event, and Peter wishes to recognise the creativity, engagement, and support of colleagues from FHASS, from Marketing and Communications, and from Sheridan’s Special Events office. A sincere thanks to everyone who helped to launch this festival!

Ruby Remenda Swanson is the author of A Family Outing, a memoir about the experiences she's had as a result of having a gay son. Ruby was born and raised in Humboldt, Saskatchewan and was General Manager of the University of Alberta Botanic Garden. She's worked in public broadcasting at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and at the Children's Television Workshop in New York City. She has travelled frequently to Ukraine as part of a Canadian Foreign Affairs deployment to monitor elections and for almost a decade taught English to many new immigrants to Canada. Ruby was recognized by the University of Alberta Office of Safe Disclosure and Human Rights for her work to promote the rights of the LGBTQ community across campus. Ruby lives in Edmonton with her husband.