Samantha Koon

Samantha Koon is a marketing communications professional with a passion for entrepreneurship. She serves as the Director of Communications for Illinois Extension, where she manages a team who focuses on expanding the reach, impact, and visibility of Extension programming across the state. Samantha also teaches several courses at the University of Illinois, focusing on entrepreneurship, innovation, and communications. She has nearly 20 years of experience in a variety of roles in the non-profit and higher education sectors.

Samantha also owns The Zybell House, a historic boarding house and vacation home, and the Greenhouse Café, a small coffee shop and cafe at Allerton Park and Retreat Center. These ventures have allowed her to continue a family tradition of entrepreneurship and to fill several unmet needs in her local community.

A native of Wolcott, Indiana, Samantha both studied and worked at Purdue University, earning undergraduate and graduate degrees from Purdue and an MBA from Indiana University. She lives in Monticello, Ill., with her husband and daughter.