"I want to demystify poetry. And, by doing so, I want to raise the bar with the writing."

— Tina Cane, founder of Writers-in-the-Schools, RI, poet and mother of three

Writers-in-the-Schools, RI's team includes:

Tina Cane (Founder & Director) is a teaching poet with Writers-in-the-Schools, RI. She is also the program's founder and director. Tina holds a B.A. in French and English from the University of Vermont and the University of Paris—Paris IV—La Sorbonne, and a Master's degree in French Literature from Middlebury College and the University of Paris—Paris X—Nanterre. She has taught French, English, and Creative Writing in the public and private school systems of New York City and Rhode Island for over 15 years. Her book-length poem, The Fifth Thought (Other Painters Press) was published in 2008. Her work has appeared in numerous journals, including Barrow Street, Hanging Loose, The Literary Review, Spinning Jenny, and Girls: An Anthology (Global City Press).

Indigo K. Bethea has been performing in Spoken Word circles in Providence since 2007. She began working with the Writers-in-the-Schools program last year, and looks forward to doing so again. In addition to working with WITS, Ms. Bethea has helped lead many workshops with youth groups and women's groups regarding the importance of poetry in their lives through the "Understanding Our Past" program. Her passion for teaching extends to the college and university level, where she is an adjunct professor and cultural anthropologist. Ms. Bethea is also a published author, having produced two poetry books: But Beautiful—Reflections on Love and Loss and A Calling Out to Nubia: Poetry for the Young and Old.

Kate Schapira has taught creative writing (poetry, fiction and essays), academic writing, and literature to adults, young adults and children for over 10 years, and has taught ESL in Xiantao, China and Bristol, RI. She currently teaches at Brown University and the University of Rhode Island, as well as at Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School with Writers-in-the-Schools, RI and as a returning guest writer for the Read and Rap program at the Smith Hill Community Library. She is the author of three books of poetry: TOWN (Factory School, Heretical Texts, 2010), The Bounty: Four Addresses (Noemi Press, 2011), and How We Saved the City (Stockport Flats, 2012), and runs Publicly Complex, a reading series for innovative poetry and fiction, in Providence. She has a B.A. from Bard College and an MFA from Brown University.

Genoa Shepley holds an MFA in fiction from Warren Wilson College and an MA in history from the University of Arizona. She has taught at the University of Rhode Island, Roger Williams University, the San Francisco Academy of Art University, and Chaparral Elementary School. She has also served as a mentor to middle-school teachers as part of the U.S. Department of Education Teaching American History Grant. Genoa is the co-author of Drawn West: Selections from the Robert B. Honeyman Jr. Collection of Early Californian and Western Art and Americana (Heyday Books, 2004), and her stories and articles have appeared in such publications as Zyzzyva, The Arizona Daily Star, and San Francisco Arts Monthly.

Robert Snyderman was born in Pennsylvania. He co-founded The Corresponding Society, a small press and community, and has served as a curator and editor on most of its publications. He holds an MFA in Literary Arts from Brown University.