Emily Ball Cicchini is a published and award-winning playwright whose work centers on historical, literary, and imaginative themes. Her plays have been produced nationally and are published by Dramatic Publishing and YouthPLAYS. She was playwright in residence with Pollyanna Theatre Company, which commissioned and produced over a dozen of her works for young audiences. A former James A. Michener Fellow, she holds an MFA in Playwriting from the University of Texas at Austin, a BFA in Acting from the Goodman School of Drama, and a PhD in Organizational Communication and Technology from UT Austin’s Moody College of Communication. Her teaching experience spans K–12 through graduate levels in both academic and community settings.