Chef Mark Wright recently retired as a full-time faculty member at the State University of New York-Erie Community College, where he was the department chair for over 16 years. Wright previously served as the executive chef at the Transit Valley Country Club from 1975-2003 and spent eight years in the same role at the Crag Burn Golf Club in East Aurora, New York. Wright has been a member of the American Culinary Federation for over 50 years and enjoyed numerous leadership roles at the national level of the organization. Wright was tabbed for induction into the American Academy of Chefs Hall of Fame and is a member of the AAC Honorary Board of Trustees.

Chef Liz Howe’s culinary journey began at the age of 15 in Oklahoma City, where she started as a hostess, busser and dishwasher. Inspired by those early experiences, Howe committed to a lifelong career in the food service industry. In 2016, Howe joined US Foods as the Oklahoma City Division Chef. Her passion for food and people propelled her to become the Food Fanatic Chef in Oklahoma City in 2019 and later the Central Region Culinary Manager in 2021. Howe currently serves as the Senior Culinary Manager at the US Foods Corporate Kitchens, where she contributes to product development and innovation. To date, Howe has amassed over 25 years of diverse culinary expertise.

Chef Steve Jilleba is a 1977 graduate of the prestigious Culinary Institute of America who spent the ensuing five decades at numerous executive chef positions in hotels and other fine dining establishments around the globe. Jilleba has an extensive background in culinary competitions, consulting, leadership and marketing. An award-winning culinary expert, he has won an impressive nine gold medals at International Culinary Olympic competitions. He previously served as a senior corporate executive chef for Unilever Food Solutions and is the founder of SJ Consulting. An American Culinary Federation Certified Master Chef and a World Association of Chef Global Master Chef, Jilleba was awarded an honorary doctorate from Johnson & Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island.

A 41-year veteran of the food-service industry, Jeff Bacon is a certified executive chef, cookbook author from Winston-Salem, North Carolina. He is also a certified culinary administrator and a member of the American Academy of Chefs. In his current position at Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest North Carolina, Bacon oversees the Providence family of programs, which has combated the root causes of poverty and hunger since he founded the program in 2006. In 2023, he became the owner of 600 Degrees Live Fire Kitchen in Winton-Salem. He serves as a National Member Ambassador for Catalyst Kitchens and co-chair of the National Job Training Cohort for Feeding America.