Annual Mentor Community Connection with Johnathan Grant Brown

Our mentors and the North Texas community came together in February for our annual Mentor Community Connection, a free educational workshop meant to empower and further educate our mentors and other adults who work with at-risk teens. We partnered with the Midlothian Community Development Corporation Board and keynote speaker, Jonathan Grant Brown, who brought a powerful message.

Jonathan is an innovative leader in shifting the way business as usual is done in higher education. Being a part of the change taking place in higher education institutions has given Jonathan the opportunity to collaborate with internal stakeholders and engage students on a level that empowers them in taking ownership of their learning.

Jonathan earned his B.A. degree in Communication and his M. Ed. from the University of Texas of the Permian Basin. As someone who has overwhelmingly benefited from what a collection of talented educators can provide, Jonathan has dedicated his life to empowering students and educators alike in being exceptional in their pursuit of a successful future. As an educator, he believes that building, nurturing, and growing proper relationships will accelerate student learning while helping them gain more of a responsibility for it. 

Jonathan shared his own story of childhood trauma growing up, and about the people that interrupted his life to help take him off of the path that he was on and place him on the path to success.  Later, he realized that he too, was supposed to be the interruption in other young people’s lives, to help take them off of the path that they are on and place them on the path to success.

Jonathan’s advice to mentors and other adults helping students is that, “Relationships matter. And relationships don't happen on day one.  They happen with consistency and intentionality.”