James R. Kirkwood holds a Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of Virginia. He has authored and co-authored twenty published mathematics textbooks on various topics including calculus, real analysis, mathematical biology and mathematical physics, many published by CRC Press. His original research was in mathematical physics, and he co-authored the seminal paper in a topic now called Kirkwood-Thomas Theory. He is the recipient of many awards for his teaching and research, including the Outstanding Faculty Award of the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia-the Commonwealth's highest honor for faculty at Virginia's public and private colleges and universities.

Raina S. Robeva is a Professor of Mathematics at Randolph-Macon College in Virginia. She holds a Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of Virginia and is the lead author/editor of several textbooks and volumes in mathematical biology. She has led numerous educational and professional development initiatives at the interface of mathematics and biology sponsored by NSF, NIH, and MAA among others. Robeva is the founding Chief Editor of Frontiers in Systems Biology, a specialty journal in the Frontiers portfolio of open-access publications. In 2014 she was awarded the Outstanding Faculty Award of the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia.