
Mr. John Tao
Blue Cross Blue Shield of IL
John is a first generation Chinese American. Born in the Midwest, John grew up on the east coast before returning back to his roots. He has a BA from the University of Wisconsin – Madison, and a JD from Indiana University McKinney School of Law. He is currently the Director of Global Privacy Compliance at Tenneco, Inc.
John is passionate about issues of inclusivity, equity, and social justice and has been involved with non-profit and public interest work all his life. As a child, his family started a non-profit focused on providing Chinese senior citizens knowledge to obtain US citizenship and also taught adopted Chinese children and their families Chinese culture and language. He became active in pan-Asian activism as a high school intern with the Chinese Progressive Association of Boston working on land reclamation and zoning rights. In law school he focused on immigrant rights, working with victims of crimes; criminal justice through the Innocence Project; and holistic health
access through a Medical-Legal Partnership. He has volunteered with or served on the board for: the AIDS Legal Council of Chicago; Howard Brown Health; Center on Halsted; Lakeside Pride; Proud to Run; Chinatown Legal Clinic; Chicago Volunteer Legal Services; and CiviWiki.