Kris grew up on a family dairy farm before joining the Nebraska Air National Guard and attending college at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He has worked in the dairy industry his entire life and has helped develop new markets and advocate for Nebraska's dairy industry in the Unicameral and Washington DC.

Dr. David Douphrate is an Associate Professor with the Southwest Center for Occupational and Environmental Health, located at the University of Texas, School of Public Health. Douphrate conducts research and outreach related to worker health and safety through the High Plains and Intermountain Center for Agricultural Health and Safety (HICAHS), headquartered at Colorado State University. Douphrate and his colleagues conduct research and outreach with dairy producers to improve safe working environments while simultaneously improving dairy productivity and efficiency.