Boards & Advisors

Julie became a Wildlife Center board member in 2021. She grew up in Virginia and recently returned to her home state after nearly 20 years in the Boston area. Professionally, Julie consults in emergency preparedness and physical security, working with clients in a variety of industries, including education, research, and healthcare. In addition, Julie co-founded a small non-profit organization focused on international disaster risk reduction. She is an instructor in Krav Maga (an Israeli form of hand-to-hand combat) and teaches self-defense courses to community groups with a focus on female runners. Julie loves the mountains, old forests, and, of course, animals. She enjoys running trails near her home in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Dale is a native Virginian who grew up in Tidewater and now lives in Richmond with his wife Sara and a multitude of cats, dogs, and horses. He became acquainted with the Wildlife Center while attending a safari in South Africa with Ed Clark. His volunteer work with the Center has allowed him to pursue his lifelong interest in wildlife conservation. Dale’s professional experience includes more than 40 years in public company and non-profit auditing and risk management. He was the Chief Auditor of Capital One Financial from 1995 until 2003 and then the American Red Cross from 2006 until his retirement in 2015. He has a BS degree from Virginia Tech, an MBA from Virginia Commonwealth University, and is a Certified Public Accountant. As Board Treasurer, Dale helps oversee the Center’s financial, administrative, and foundation operations.

Nina Cron is a native Virginian who grew up in Rockbridge County and recently returned home after a career in public service that took her throughout the United States and around the world. She began her career as Rockbridge County’s 911 Coordinator before joining the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security, where she spent more than 25 years in law enforcement, security, policy, and senior advisory roles. Most recently, she served as a Senior Policy Advisor, focusing on policy development, legislative issues, and strategic planning.

A lifelong animal lover, Nina has long looked forward to becoming involved with the Wildlife Center of Virginia. Volunteering with the Center was at the top of her list of things she hoped to do when she returned home and retired, making the opportunity to serve on its Board of Directors especially meaningful.

Nina loves nature, the outdoors, and staying active, and her sense of adventure has taken her from completing two Ironman triathlons to hiking to Everest Base Camp. She especially enjoys spending time along the river in Rockbridge Baths where she grew up. In retirement, she looks forward to supporting the Wildlife Center’s mission, spending more time with her elderly parents, loving on her two Maine Coon cats, and learning to paint with watercolors.

Ian fell in love with the Wildlife Center after moving to Virginia and he joined the Board in 2023. He is an attorney at Womble Bond Dickinson in Charlottesville specializing in complex litigation. In addition to his work and board service, Ian enjoys bird watching, hiking, and trail running in Shenandoah National Park and the Washington and Jefferson National Forests.  He lives in Waynesboro with his wife and two dogs.

Laura Hogan is an operations strategist and change-management leader with more than two decades of experience guiding mission-driven organizations through growth, restructuring, and organizational transformation. She is recognized for her empathetic leadership style, her ability to build collaborative cultures, and her skill in navigating complex, high-stakes environments with clarity and care.

Laura is currently Director of Development at the Fauquier Free Clinic, serving the Fauquier and Rappahannock communities by providing comprehensive medical, dental, and mental health care to eligible residents. Prior to that, Laura served on the senior leadership team at NPR, where she was Chief of Staff to the Chief Content Officer. In this role, she helped guide the strategic direction of NPR’s content portfolio, supporting more than 600 employees across the newsroom and content divisions. She led major operational initiatives and served as a trusted advisor through periods of uncertainty, crisis response, and organizational change. Prior to NPR, Laura was in key leadership roles at the National Geographic Society and Discovery Communications. 

Laura is an active community volunteer. She serves as Vice Chair of the Draper Natural History Museum Advisory Board at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Cody, Wyoming, contributes to DEI advisory work at The Highland School, and volunteers with several community-based organizations in Fauquier County, Virginia.

Having lived the early years of her life around the world (Australia, Canada, Kenya, French Polynesia), birding and enjoying the wild every step of the way, she is passionate about the Center’s mission to conserve native wildlife, advance veterinary medicine, and inspire environmental stewardship through education. Laura currently lives in Warrenton, Virginia, with her two teenagers and a menagerie of pets.
 

Scott has worked in the Financial Services Industry since 1998, and has been at Weaver Insurance & Financial Advisors since May 2011. Scott is a Certified Estate Planner, and also works in the Commercial Insurance Division. Scott earned a BS from Clemson University where he also worked for the baseball team. Scott loves to play golf, travel, and spend time in the outdoors. Scott spends his time working between Augusta County and Pawley’s Island, SC, where his wife lives and works full-time. This is not Scott’s first exposure to the Wildlife Center of Virginia; he volunteered in the old location in Weyers Cave more than 30 years ago as a high school student.

Meredyth joined the Wildlife Center’s Board of Directors in 2026. She originally moved to the area to attend graduate school and has since built a long career in human resources. She currently leads human capital strategy for Everforth ECS in Fairfax.

A lifelong animal lover, Meredyth has shared her home with many furry family members over the years. While in graduate school, she volunteered at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo, and joining the Wildlife Center’s board brings that early experience full circle and allows her to further her passion for supporting the welfare of the animals with whom we share the world.

Meredyth divides her time between Washington, D.C., and Oregon. She and her husband travel as often as possible and enjoy a variety of outdoor activities, including paddleboarding, hiking, and skiing.

Rachel works to protect marine life and ecosystems as a senior attorney in the Center for Biological Diversity's Oceans program. She previously worked as a clinical instructor at Harvard Law School’s Animal Law & Policy Clinic, where she represented wildlife rehabilitators and community members in petitioning Massachusetts regulators to ban the sale of anticoagulant rodenticides, which kill eagles, owls, and other wildlife. Prior to that, Rachel served as Director of Captive Animal Law Enforcement at the PETA Foundation, where she worked with a team of lawyers, veterinarians, and other experts to fight the exploitation of wild animals for entertainment. She earned a law degree with a certificate in environmental law from Tulane University Law School and a bachelor’s degree from the College of William and Mary. In addition to serving on the Wildlife Center's Board, Rachel thoroughly enjoys volunteering as an adult literacy tutor at READ RVA. Rachel was born and raised in Virginia and lives in Richmond.

Kurt started volunteering with the Wildlife Center in 2002, helping with technology projects to update the Center’s internal network.  Over the years, he has implemented new telephone systems, servers and workstations, a network infrastructure throughout the complex, and the Critter Cam network.  He joined the Board of Directors in 2003 as Treasurer. In 2011, he joined the Wildlife Center Foundation and became Wildlife Center Foundation President in 2016.  Kurt works for the City of Staunton and lives in Staunton with his wife and dog.

A native Virginian, Jeff was raised on a large farm in Loudoun County where he developed an affinity for animals and the outdoors. After earning a BS degree in Environmental Studies from the College of William & Mary, Jeff worked as a field biologist under a cooperative agreement with the Virginia Game Commission to re-establish and protect peregrine falcons, ospreys, and bald eagles across the Commonwealth. After several years of fieldwork, Jeff returned to academia, ultimately graduating from Duke University with an MS degree in Environmental Toxicology. He entered the consulting field in Washington DC, focusing on information technology and data analytics for Federal and state environmental agencies. After 9/11, wanting to defend our nation in whatever capacity possible, Jeff took his talents to the defense and intelligence communities where he worked on counter-terrorism both domestically and abroad. He is currently a Senior Vice President in a Fortune 500 company where he directs business capture programs for the corporation — pursuing and winning multi-billion-dollar government contracts that support missions in homeland security, defense, and national intelligence. Jeff started transporting injured animals to the Wildlife Center in 1991 – where he fell in love both with the Center itself and the dedicated people who work there. Through the years, he has engaged the Center in numerous capacities and is thrilled to be able to give back to the organization that has given so much to our collective and common good.