Steven L. Layne serves as Professor of Literacy Education at Judson University in Elgin, IL, where he teaches courses in children’s literature and directs the university’s Master of Education in Literacy program. He is a fifteen-year veteran of public education—serving as a classroom teacher and reading specialist in grades two, three, five, six, seven, and eight.
Dr. Layne is a respected literacy consultant, motivational keynote speaker, and featured author who works with large numbers of educators and children during school visits and at conferences held throughout the world each year. His work has been recognized with awards for outstanding contributions to the fields of educational research, teaching, and writing from organizations such as USA Today newspaper, The Milken Family Foundation, The Illinois Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development, The National Council of Teachers of English, the Illinois Reading Council, and the International Reading Association.
Dr. Layne has authored 21 books including multiple award-winning titles in both the picture book and young adult genres including his beloved classic—The Teachers’ Night before Christmas, the teen thriller This Side of Paradise, the picture book Love the Baby, and his bestselling professional book Igniting a Passion for Reading: Successful Strategies for Building Lifetime Readers. He lives with his wife Debbie—who serves as a K-12 Curriculum Coordinator—and their four children: Grayson, Victoria, Jackson and Candace + one very adorable 65 lb. collie named Shelby in St. Charles, Illinois.
1989 Judson College, B.A.
