Jennie is a first-generation journalist, educator, and community builder passionate about equitable access to information and storytelling. Her career spans classrooms and newsrooms: she began as a dual-language teacher in Dallas ISD through Teach for America and later led citywide journalism initiatives with the Dallas Media Collaborative. She has also mentored emerging journalists and led youth programs that blend media literacy with life skills. At Dallas Free Press, she oversees content strategy and partnerships that center community voices and make civic systems easier to navigate.
The Dallas Community Land Trust (DCLT) is a nonprofit organization that aims to provide an affordable path to home ownership by keeping land costs low, and has recently hosted its first open house showcasing two homes in South Dallas that will be available for purchase by the end of the year.
Cynthia Rogers-Ellickson, the City of Dallas' Director of Housing and Community Development, reflects on her life and legacy of working to provide affordable housing and home repair services to the people of West Dallas.
Forest Forward recently welcomed community members to its new headquarters to share updates on the restoration of the historic Forest Theater and the expansion of the Martin Luther King Jr. Arts Academy, and to introduce Nijeul X as the organization's new artistic director.
What originally started as an effort to revive the theater has expanded in scope, with Forest Forward acquiring several surrounding parcels of land between Julius Schepps Freeway and SM Wright Freeway. Forest Forward now owns the theater, the former liquor store just north of the theater, the gas station next door to the liquor store, and the lots behind the theater where an infamous gambling house once stood.
