David E. Kirkland is a transdisciplinary scholar of English and urban education, who explores the intersections among urban youth culture, language and literacy, urban teacher preparation, and digital media. He analyzes culture, language, and texts, and has expertise in critical literary, ethnographic, and sociolinguistic research methods. He has received many awards for his work, including the 2008 AERA Division G Outstanding Dissertation Award, and was a 2009-10 Ford Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow and is a former fellow of NCTE Cultivating New Voices. Dr. Kirkland has published widely. His most recent articles include: "Black Skin, White Masks: Normalizing Whiteness and the Trouble with the Achievement Gap" (TCRecord), "English(es) in urban contexts: Politics, Pluralism, and Possibilities" (English Education), and "We real cool: Examining Black males and literacy" (Reading Research Quarterly). He is currently completing his fourth book, A Search Past Silence, to be published through Teacher College Press Language and Literacy Series. Dr. Kirkland believes that, in their language and literacies, youth take on new meanings beginning with a voice and verb, where words when spoken or written have the power to transform the world inside out.