Jon Bockman graduated from NIU with a B.S. in Psychology in 2005, and proceeded to divide his time between working as a zookeeper at Brookfield Zoo and working as a wildlife rehabilitator, garnering experience with over 100 different species. Jon left the zoo in 2007, and currently manages the wildlife center at TAILS Humane Society and acts as Director of Operations at Oaken Acres Wildlife Center. He pioneered an internship program at TAILS that provides youth with concrete experience. He founded Justice For Animals as a non-profit organization in 2010. In addition to organizing over sixty events in JFA’s first two years, he has spoke to hundreds of college students about factory farming. Jon has distributed over 30,000 booklets to college students, and helped launch international Facebook advertising campaigns that have reached over 1,000,000 individuals. In late 2011, he started a small business called AllVeg Delights (www.AllVegDelights.com) that sells vegan sandwiches and baked goods locally, and has since partnered with vegan baker Jori Campagna.

Darina Smith works as a Finance and Operations Manager of a Fortune 500 company’s division in Chicago. Alongside her career, she devotes her free time to farmed animal advocacy, by volunteering for several animal protection groups. She is a Vice President of VegFund, a global organization providing funding for vegan outreach projects. She is also an Outreach Coordinator for Mercy For Animals, organizing dozens of leafleting, tabling and other outreach events in Illinois every year. In 2009, Mercy For Animals honored Darina with the Grassroots Activist of the Year award. Additionally, Darina is one of the top leafleters in Vegan Outreach’s college outreach program, having distributed over 33,000 thought-provoking leaflets to college students in 12 states in less than 3 years. Darina is from Slovakia, and speaks multiple languages. She holds an MBA from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Cory Cox graduated summa cum laude in 2010 with a B.A. in English from NIU, where he was part of the University Honors program. He is currently a teacher in the English department’s First Year Composition program. He is also a full-time M.A. student studying English and American Literature. A frequent volunteer at TAILS Humane Society in Dekalb, Cory only recently made the transition to veganism within the last year. He has plenty to show for that one year – loads of volunteer time at JFA events, an impressive ability to maintain composure, and a strong willingness to learn make Cory a high-quality budding activist.