Maddie Krasno’s journey to becoming a humane educator began as a college student passionate about primate conservation. To get experience working with monkeys, she spent two years as a student caretaker in a primate research laboratory on campus. Witnessing this injustice with her own eyes, Maddie turned to the field of rescue, working for numerous sanctuaries, wildlife rehabilitation centers, and advocacy groups throughout the country and abroad. Maddie holds a master’s degree in humane education through the Institute for Humane Education and bachelor’s degrees in Zoology and Child Development from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  

In 2017, Maddie found her home with Farm Sanctuary, the nation’s leading farm animal rescue and protection organization, first as a sanctuary tour guide and eventually as the San Francisco Bay Area Humane Educator. Now, as Farm Sanctuary’s Senior Humane Educator, Maddie is responsible for curriculum and classroom program development, managing the classroom program, facilitating education internships, and continuing to grow the classroom program in her territory, Northern California. 

Farm Sanctuary recently transformed its regional, in-classroom program into a program that is completely online and available to classrooms nationwide free of charge. Farm Sanctuary offers both live and pre-recorded presentations for students in preschool through college that cover a variety of topics including the treatment of animals in our food system, the environmental and public health impacts of our food, social justice, Farm Sanctuary’s history, and the inspiring stories of rescued farmed animals.

Teacher feedback on Farm Sanctuary’s programming is extremely positive, highlighting students’ love and appreciation for the lessons, the age-appropriateness of content, and the various methods used to share information, such as captivating photography and graphics, story-telling, art activities, and worksheets.

Maddie is grateful to work for Farm Sanctuary whose core belief, that all beings deserve freedom from oppression, aligns with her own.

Maddie states, “I love that my work is encouraging young people to deepen their understanding of the systemic injustices taking place in our food system and empowering students to take action that will lead to a more just and compassionate world for all.”