Jon Ivan Gill engages philosophy as not merely the practice of thought about the nature of things but also (and perhaps more importantly) how we live into and intensify our understanding of the nature of things through experience. From the Hip-Hop shows scattered throughout the Chicago to LA underground to silence on a train in Ciudad de México, Jon Ivan delves into the fabric of what the universe makes evident about that which we consider most important. As Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Gustavus Adolphus College, he explores with students the center and the fringes of the discipline as it has been traditionally taught in the “West,” asking why its borders have been so narrow and how we can be more attuned to the practice of philosophy in realms where we haven’t been trained to expect it. In addition to teaching, Jon is also author of Underground Rap as Religion: A Theopoetic Examination of a Process Aesthetic Religion and editor of Toward Afro-diasporic and Afrofuturist Philosophies of Religion. His latest monograph, MultiRaceLess Ness: A Process Philosophy, was published November 2025 by Bloomsbury Academic.

Mayda del Valle is a Chicago-born writer and multidisciplinary artist whose work lives at the intersection of poetry, performance, memory, and community. Rooted in the Puerto Rican diaspora and shaped by hip-hop, movement, and visual art, her practice transforms personal history into shared ritual. Whether on stage, in classrooms, or in public space, she creates work that invites people to see themselves reflected, work that asks us to remember where we come from and imagine what we can build together. A passionate arts educator, Mayda has taught poetry in schools, colleges, youth detention facilities and served as Program Director of Street Poets Inc. in Los Angeles. She is currently a Poet-in-Residence with The Chicago Poetry Center.