Senior Program Coordinator, Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership & Community Development
With expansive vocations focused on connecting people and engaging in community, Jesse stewards new and ongoing relationships across all fourteen communities included in the Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership. He works cooperatively to support partner neighborhood leaders’ self-determined priorities, amplifying their voices to decision-makers and leveraging university resources through grantmaking and other generative channels for community benefit.
In addition to serving with DCA, they work as Director of Music Ministry at CityWell United Methodist Church and as Chair of the Pride: Durham, NC Planning Committee at the LGBTQ Center of Durham. Coming from a family of artists, educators, and ministers, Jesse continues to develop deep passions for community engagement and cultural preservation in a variety of spaces and contexts. She also serves as the Board Chair of the Pauli Murray Center for History and Social Justice, which includes the Pauli Murray Family Home, a National Historic Landmark located in Durham’s West End.
Jesse holds a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Duke (class of 2010) as well as a Master’s degree in Counseling from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. In their spare time, Jesse drinks their water, moves their body, counts their blessings, and minds their business.