Susan S. Phillips (PhD, University of California, Berkeley) is executive director and professor of sociology and Christianity at New College Berkeley, where she previously served as academic dean. She is a sociologist and trained spiritual director who also serves as supervisor for spiritual directors and consultant for Christian organizations. Drawing insight from the diverse fields of the social sciences, biblical spirituality and practical theology, Phillips has authored books such as the award-winning The Crisis of Care: Affirming and Restoring Caring Practices in the Helping Professions and Candlelight: Illuminating the Art of Spiritual Direction. In addition to lecturing internationally and leading retreats for churches and organizations, Phillips also teaches at Regent College (Canada), Fuller Theological Seminary and the Diploma in the Art of Spiritual Direction program at San Francisco Theological Seminary. She sits on the editorial boards of Radix and Presence magazines and the journal Reflective Practice. Along with her husband Steve, she has two sons and worships at First Presbyterian Church of Berkeley, where she has served as an elder.

Patricia Benner, PhD, RN, FAAN, is a professor emerita of nursing in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences Nursing at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). She is a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing and an honorary fellow in the Royal College of Nursing, United Kingdom. She is the author of "From Novice to Expert: Excellence and Power in Clinical Nursing Practice", which has been translated into 10 languages and provides the background for this research; has coauthored with Judith Wrubel in "The Primacy of Caring, Stress and Coping in Health and Illness; Expertise in Nursing Practice: Caring, Clinical Judgment and Ethics" with Christine Tanner and Catherine Chesla; and The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching National Nursing Education Study entitled, "Educating Nurses: A Call for Radical Transformation" (Benner, Sutphen, Leonard, & Day, 2010). Dr. Benner coedited "Interpretive Phenomenology in Health Care Research" (Chan, Brykczynski, Malone, & Benner, 2010). Dr. Benner is currently conducting research on clinical knowledge and experiential learning of nurses caring for wounded warriors in combat zones with Dr. Patricia Kelley and colleagues from the Federal Tri-Service Research Program.