Hello! I am the executive director of the Macomb Area Economic Development Corporation (MAEDCO). I began my career with MAEDCO as an administrative assistant and worked my way into my current position in 1999. I have a bachelor’s degree from Western Illinois University and will receive my Masters of Community and Economic Development this December. I am also a graduate of the University of Oklahoma’s Economic Development Institute.

In addition to serving as the Vice-Chair of the CEO Program, I am on various boards and committees; including, the Illinois Economic Development Association (immediate past Chairman), Workforce Investment, Housing Authority of McDonough County, and the Western Illinois Regional Council.

I live in Bushnell with Steve Walters and our beloved two-year old: a coated German Shepherd Dog—Agustus (Gus) Von Panzer.

I collect vintage Pez dispensers and enjoy participating in area 5K walk/run events.

I’ve been working with Prairie Farmer for 21 years, all from our farm near Bushnell. I started my career with Prairie Farmer before graduating from the University of Illinois in agricultural communications, starting as a field editor. Today I serve as Editor of Prairie Farmer and Executive Editor for Farm Progress, managing editorial staff at 6 magazines throughout the eastern Corn Belt. I’m past president of the American Agricultural Editors Association and serve on several boards throughout the state. My husband, John, and I farm with his parents and our three children, Jenna, 16; Nathan, 14; and Caroline, 11, raising corn, soybeans and beef cattle. In my spare time, I like to volunteer with our church, school and 4-H and enjoy playing the piano, photography and working with cattle. I wrote about CEO for the magazine several years ago and believe it to be, hands down, the best program I’ve ever seen for both challenging small-town students and for developing rural communities. It’s a win-win for everyone.

My name is Kristen Conrad.  I'm one of the newest board members of the McDonough County CEO program and serve as the Chair of the Investor Committee.  I knew from the minute I heard about CEO that I wanted to be involved.  Make Fit Happen, a fitness studio, is my current business and was started in 2010. The Pampered Chef was my first venture as an Independent Consultant and my second venture was a business I created and owned, The Glass Bracelet.  Working with these students as a mentor over the past three years has been such a rewarding experience.  The growth throughout the school year is amazing to watch. I'm so proud to be a part of the McDonough County CEO Program!

Greetings! I am entering my 4th year with the Macomb School District as a school counselor. The past three years I have been with the junior high and this year I have taken on a new role as high school counselor. I am a 2013 graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and received my Master’s in Counseling Psychology from Oklahoma State University in 2015. My husband and I reside on a farm near Roseville with our three daughters where we raise row crops and feeder cattle. I spend most of my free time in a gym coaching volleyball in the fall for Macomb and at Immaculate Conception School in the winter where my youngest attends. I am eager to start my journey with the McDonough County CEO program as a board member and see firsthand how our students will utilize the valuable skills they learn over the next year.