Roxanne Cardona was born in New York City of Puerto Rican descent. She earned her BA in Theatre Arts and her MS in Education from Hunter College, another MS in Educational Administration from the College of New Rochelle. She lives in Teaneck, New Jersey with her husband, René. Her poem, Luquillo Entre las Nubes, was a finalist in the 2023 Ekphrastic Poetry Prize and her first book, Caught in the Principal's Lens , was a finalist in the 2024 Wheelbarrow Books Poetry Competition. She was principal of a large elementary school in the South Bronx. Advance Praise for Caught in the Principal's Lens "Roxanne Cardona has an incredible ear and an observant eye. The poems in this accomplished debut allow the reader to witness both the trials and triumphs of the author’s students in the Bronx school where she was a principal and teacher for decades. Cardona is a powerful storyteller; whether she is honoring a favorite student who was missing for almost a year, following excruciating rules to suspend a child for finding a knife, or trying to help both parents and students in a system without enough resources or support, Cardona’s concise images and expansive metaphors allow us to feel that we are there alongside her, making the hardest decisions of her life. This book full of brutality and beauty offers us the story-from the principal’s perspective. Thanks to Cardona’s hard work at her school, perhaps some of those children will grow up to tell their stories, too. This is a book that every teacher should read. These poems will haunt you long after you close the book. You will remember— Empty desks and empty chairs hold their tongues. Maps of the world hang with the promise of turning. —Jennifer Franklin, author of If Some God Shakes Your House, finalist for the 2024 Paterson Poetry Prize "Roxanne Cardona has a big, important story to tell us, and she tells it with great grace, and firsthand knowledge, the way a teacher, a principal would. I find this wonderful collection both moving and inspiring. “But it’s the secrets I need.” Well, we get plenty of captivating secrets, indeed. Stories of taking over the impossible reins as a principal, with all those “cleaners, crossing guards, custodians, aides and screaming secretaries,” of lost children and power outages, stories of absolute dedication and fear, all turned into music and delight. She says it best: “I am the Principal. In an open guillotine.” One poem asks for a Possible teacher Rating: Superb. This is a needed testimony. I couldn’t be more moved, and grateful." —Philip Schultz, author of Failure, winner of the 2007 Pulitzer Prize