Ms. Stein has worked as a freelance writer since 1978, and has published nearly 100 titles for children and young adults. She also hold's a master's in social work, and worked for several years in community mental health at the University Settlement House in New York City. From 1975 to 1980 she lived in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, where she helped to establish a school for children with disabilities. She is very active in the NFB of Illinois, and involved with some NFB programs at the national level. Currently she chairs the Committee on Automobile and Pedestrian Safety (CAPS), which is concerned with the effects of hybrids and other "quiet cars" on the safety of pedestrians, blind and sighted.