Jonathan Brown
Jonathan Brown is a community servant committed to ensuring that youth in underserved communities are able to achieve greater capacities in life. Throughout his career, he has worked in various capacities focusing on Youth in Chicago. He spent years as Juvenile Probation Officer utilizing his clinical skillset to help reduce recidivism in one of the highest crime-ridden areas on Chicago’s Southside. Jonathan also spent years working as a Program Manager/Social Worker for an inaugural program called EmpowerYouth! between the Chicago Urban League and the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Jonathan currently serves as an Engagement Manager of a Youth program. In this role, he works to connect community resources to Youth and their families in need of mental health and mentoring services. He is currently developing a social/emotional learning curriculum that will be catered specifically to Black and Brown male students at local elementary schools.
Jonathan is a native of Robbins, IL, a predominately African American city in the South Suburbs of Chicago. Jonathan credits his hometown as being the motivation for his career choice. He lives by the motto, “Never forget where you came from.”
In his spare time, Jonathan is an active member in Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated, where he has served as the Education Foundation’s Scholarship Chair for Black male students in Chicago. He has also served previously as the Community Service Award chair. He also enjoys traveling, with his favorite places being anywhere in the Caribbean.
Jonathan holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and a Bachelor of Arts in Communication with an emphasis on organizational communication. He also holds a Master of Social Work, all from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.