Jennifer was born and raised in Philadelphia and is a proud Girls' High Girl. She is the daughter of Dorothy and Richard, the sister of Jackie, the mother to two beautiful sons, Harlem and Davis, and the partner to Jared. Her passion in life is to unleash the power of collective action for social change that will lead to the liberation of all people.
She is a Simmons MPH Alum, Cohort 5!
Jennifer has worked to advance racial equity in southern Oregon through the coordination of a governor supported regional health equity coalition and as the co-founder of the Southern Oregon Racial Equity Coalition (REC) following the death of Michael Brown. What started as a storytelling space for Black and brown community residents grew into an organizing and co-learning space for BIPOC residents and comrades. Alongside members of the REC, she worked to develop a racial equity toolbox to aid individuals in leading conversations about the impacts of racism. She has also co-led community conversations and action planning sessions to develop strategies to dismantle interpersonal and structural racism in the area.
While in Oregon, Jennifer was awarded the Dolores Huerta Woman in Social Justice award in 2015 and the Racial Equity Coalition was awarded the Inspiring Organization of the Year in 2016 by Oregon Action/Unite Oregon. In 2017 she moved with her family to DC to focus on addressing the inequities in breast and prostate cancer survival for Black and LGBTQIIA residents at the George Washington University Cancer Center. This involved training Washington, D.C. medical providers and medical students on the importance of leading with health equity and inclusion in all policies and practices.
Jenn’s interests are not in research for research's sake, but using research to answer questions that movement activists have or to collect data necessary for movement advocacy. She focuses her energy on exposing the ways that structural racism feeds policies and laws in this country and developing ways to dismantle them.
Now back in her hometown of Philadelphia, Jennifer has the honor of serving as the Deputy Director of the Ubuntu Center on Racism, Global Movements & Population Health Equity. There she uses her skills, experiences in other states, and access to resources, to support collaborative and collective action alongside resident activists and research scholars at Drexel University.
Jennifer is committed to partnering with and learning alongside people of the African diaspora in Philly and globally to develop action plans to demand repair of historical and current harms while supporting the healing necessary for our well-being.
Education
- Biology, Temple University
- Sociology, Oregon State University
- Public Health, Simmons University
Area of Expertise
- Health Equity
- Social Movements
- Movement/Community Organizing
- Power Mapping
- Racial Capitalism
- Racial Equity
- Structural Racism
- Transdisciplinary Coalition Building
- Health Literacy
What I Teach
- MHEO 475 - HECP I
Community Engagement
- Jennifer volunteers as the People's Health Movement Regional Representative for North America. For more information, visit https://phmovement.org/
- Former President, HERE4Justice, Simmons University Public Health
- Former Public Relations Coordinator, Simmons University Public Health
Research/Special Projects
- An Antiracism Framework: Developing a Community Engaged Participatory Model for Advancing Racial Equity
Publications/Presentations
APHA 2022 - Oral Presentation: Public Health Education and Health Promotion
Title: You Don’t Need to Wait Until You’re Hired to Fight for Justice: An MPH Student-led Approach to Advocating for Health Equity and Racial Justice
Professional Affiliations & Memberships
- Member, American Public Health Association
- Co-Founder, Racial Equity Coalition of Southern Oregon
- Co-Founder, Southern Oregon Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Collaborative
- Member, Drexel University, Dornsife School of Public Health Dean Search Committee
- Member, Dornsife School of Public Health Staff Coordinating Committee
- Representative, Dornsife School of Public Health School Council
- Former Member, Oregon Department of Education African American/Black Student Success Plan Advisory Group
- Former Member, Southern Oregon Early Learning Hub Executive Council
- Former Member, Oregon Public Health Institute, Consumer Confidence Project Advisory Committee
Awards
- 2022 Transformative Health Equity Change Champion Award - Simmons University
- 2016 Inspiring Organization of the Year (Co-Founder), Racial Equity Coalition, Oregon Action
- 2015 Dolores Huerta Woman in Social Justice Award, Oregon Action