Nick Panzarella is the president of the American branch of Cademia Siciliana. He studied linguistics at Tulane University and brings the experience of working with many language communities to the work of keeping the Sicilian language alive for future generations. He believes that languages are a treasure, and that anyone can reclaim their heritage language. 

Chelsea Shannon is an educator, writer, and media producer who specializes in interpretive storytelling for museums. She once wrote a college-level textbook, but has since decided that writing for children is much more fun. 

Based in Houston, Texas, Nick and Chelsea are raising their son trilingually in Sicilian, Italian, and English.