Dante D. Dixson received his Bachelor’s degree (Honors) in psychology, Master’s degree in education, and Ph.D. in School Psychology from the University of California, Berkeley. Currently, he serves as a Associate Professor at Michigan State University within the School and Educational Psychology Programs and is a Licensed Psychologist.

Dr. Dixson has authored or co/authored over 50 scholarly articles, research presentations, and book chapters. His areas of expertise include the role of hope in the educational and psychological functioning of children and adolescents, positive psychology, psychosocial precursors of achievement, at-risk youth, the achievement gap, academic talent development/gifted education, and the translation of psychological research findings into school-based practice.

Dr. Dixson currently serves on the editorial boards of Gifted Child Quarterly, Journal for the Education of the Gifted, and the Journal of Black Psychology. In addition, he is a board member for the Roeper Institute, Boys Hope Girls Hope-Detroit, and the Michigan Association of Gifted Children.

Dr. Joni Lakin (Ph.D., The University of Iowa) is Professor of Educational Research at The University of Alabama and Director of the Office of Interdisciplinary STEM Education Research. Dr. Lakin is lead author of the Cognitive Abilities Test (Form 8) and studies test validity and fairness with a particular interest in the equitable identification of students with academic talents. Her work in this area received the 2019 NAGC “Gifted Child Quarterly Paper of the Year Award”.

Seon-Young Lee, Ph.D. is a Professor of the Department of Education at Seoul National University in Seoul, South Korea. She is the vice president of the Korean Society for the Gifted and was the past president of the Korean Society for Creativity Education. She has published 130+ research articles, books, and book chapters about gifted and creative education with foci on giftedness and talent development, creativity, and specialized programs for gifted students. She was the editor and/or associate editor of the six international and domestic journals and is on the editorial board of international journals including Gifted Child Quarterly, High Ability Studies, and the Journal for the Education of the Gifted. She and her research team developed the Global Talent Identification Measure (i+3C) that consists of the subscales of intelligence, creativity, character, and communication skills. She has also developed to employ creativity and leadership programs for adolescents and runs a year-long program for students from low-income families to discover and raise potential gifted students. She gains creative inspirations from classical music and arts, and enjoys visiting performances and exhibitions in her spare time.

Matt Makel is currently, Professor and Research Chair in High Abilities Studies in the Werklund School of Education at the University of Calgary. Previous to this, he held positions at Johns Hopkins University and was Director of Research and Evaluation for the Duke University Talent Identification Program. In his research, he seeks to better uncover who would benefit from gifted and talented programming, how we can best identify them, and how we can help them flourish. Additionally, he seeks to help schools do this through assisting them in aligning their actions with their locally developed aspirations.

Michael S. Matthews completed his Ph.D. in Educational Psychology with a concentration in Gifted and Creative Education at the University of Georgia in 2002. He was a postdoctoral research fellow at Duke University’s Talent Identification Program from 2003-05 and then was on the faculty at the University of South Florida (2005-2008). He is now Professor of Gifted Education at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where he has worked since 2008. Dr. Matthews teaches in and directs the Graduate Certificate and the M.Ed. concentration in the education of students identified as Academically or Intellectually Gifted (AIG), the term used in North Carolina’s state legislation supporting gifted learners. His research focuses on the identification of students for gifted and advanced academic programming; parent and teacher preparation for working effectively with high-ability children, including perceptions of the gifted label; motivation and underachievement among gifted and high-ability learners; homeschooling among families of high-ability learners; gifted education policy; and the research and research methods used in gifted education. Dr. Matthews’ work has been recognized with various awards, the most recent of which is the 2025 Distinguished Scholar Award from the (U.S.) National Association for Gifted Children.

Dr. Peters is an internationally recognized expert in educational assessment and data-driven decision-making, with a particular focus on improving how schools identify students who are ready for advanced learning opportunities. 

His scholarship examines how educational assessment can be used to uncover academic potential that traditional methods often miss. His research explores how universal screening, local norms, multiple measures, can help schools find all students who are likely to thrive in advanced or accelerated learning environments.

Across his career, Dr. Peters has focused on making assessment systems more precise, practical, and predictive—ensuring educators have the evidence they need to match students with instructional challenges that foster their highest levels of growth.

Dr Geraldine Townend, is an internationally recognised scholar in gifted education, creativity, and twice-exceptionality. Based at the University of New South Wales, she is a lecturer, researcher, and academic leader whose work focuses on how we can better identify and support gifted learners, including those with disabilities or neurodivergence, through inclusive, evidence-based practice.

Geraldine’s research explores academic self-concept, creativity, and supporting educators and key stakeholders to optimise outcomes for high-ability students to thrive intellectually, creatively and social-emotionally. Her programs and publications have shaped policy and classroom practice across Australia and internationally. She has delivered professional learning to more than 240 education organisations worldwide and is a sought-after keynote speaker at major conferences in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and beyond.

She also serves as the Deputy Head of the School of Education at UNSW and is an associate editor of the Australasian Journal of Gifted Education. Recognised through multiple teaching and supervision awards, Geraldine brings expertise and commitment to equity in education.