Deborah L. Plummer, PhD is a psychologist, university professor, author, and speaker on topics central to racial equality, inclusion, and mutual respect. She is most passionate about creating inclusive organizations and building peaceful communities. Deborah draws her energy from engaging others in workshop settings, in-home book salons, community classrooms, and through her writings and blog posts. As an academic, she continues her research on diversity metrics and cross-racial friendships while teaching and facilitating discussions forwarding a relational model for managing the dynamics of differences. Her book, Some of My Friends Are… examines how cross-racial friendships work and fail within American society. She is editor of the Handbook of Diversity and author of Advancing Inclusion, and award-winning Racing Across the Lines. Deborah is active in the community as a member of The Links, Incorporated. In addition to Books@Work, she serves on the boards of Nana’s Tribe Foundation, Facing History and Ourselves, and GrubStreet.