James Ryan holds a bachelor's degree from the College of the Holy Cross and a master's degree in Spanish and Spanish-American Literature from Boston College. He teaches Spanish language and literature at The Roxbury Latin School in Boston, Massachusetts. He has extensive experience teaching both AP® Spanish Language and AP® Spanish Literature courses.

Ryan was an integral part of the author team for Azulejo, along with María Colbert, Abby Kanter, and Marian Sugano.