Known among her colleagues as the mother of multicultural children's literature for her groundbreaking research, Dr. Rudine Sims Bishop is a professor emerita of education at The Ohio State University.
Born in Pennslyvania, Bishop earned her teaching degree from West Chester Teachers College. After working as a third-grade teacher and language arts supervisor, Dr. Bishop taught children's literature at Morgan State, Wayne State, SUNY Buffalo, University of Massachusetts, and The Ohio State University. She earned her master's degree in reading diagnosis and instruction from the University of Pennsylvania in 1964 and her doctor of education degree in curriculum development from Wayne State University in 1972.
Her books include Shadow and Substance: Afro-American Experience in Contemporary Children’s Fiction (1982), Presenting Walter Dean Myers (1990), Kaleidoscope: A Multicultural Booklist for Grades K–8 (1994), Wonders: The Best Children’s Poems of Effie Lee Newsome (1999), and Free within Ourselves: The Development of African American Children’s Literature (2007). In Free Within Ourselves, Dr. Bishop takes the reader on a historical journey, from the earliest works written about African American children (W.E.B. DuBois’ The Brownies Book) to modern-day award-winning titles.
In 1990, Dr. Bishop published an article called "Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors" while teaching at The Ohio State University. The article, which is often cited by authors and researchers of children's literature, stated that children need to see themselves reflected in what they read.
Dr. Bishop has been recognized with numerous awards, including the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) Outstanding Elementary Language Arts Educator in 2007, the Arbuthnot Award in 1996, as well as inducted into the Reading Hall of Fame in 2001. A member of the selection committees for both the Caldecott and Newbery Medals, Dr. Bishop was awarded the Coretta Scott King – Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2017.