Will Brown Reporter email

Will Brown is a Report for America corps member focusing on race, poverty and inequality for Jacksonville Today.

He previously reported for the Jacksonville Business Journal. And before that, he spent more than a decade as a sports reporter at The St. Augustine Record, Victoria (Texas) Advocate and the Tallahassee Democrat.

Over his 15-year career, Brown has won awards for breaking news, social media and photography. And in 2020, he contributed photographs for WFSU News/Health News Florida’s national Murrow Award-winning series “Committed: How and Why Children Became the Fastest Growing Group Under Florida’s Baker Act.”

Brown has an undergraduate degree from Florida A&M University and a master’s from the University of South Florida. In his spare time, he enjoys reading and soccer. He lives in Clay County with his wife and son.

Featured image for “Q&A | Edward Waters president looks ahead to reaccreditation and new strategic plan”
A. Zachary Faison is the president of Edward Waters University. Florida's first HBCU held its 154th commencement on May 11, 2024, at the Jacksonville Center for the Performing Arts. The location was moved Downtown to accommodate the growth of the university’s graduating class. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
2 hours ago

Q&A | Edward Waters president looks ahead to reaccreditation and new strategic plan

A. Zachary Faison spoke with Jacksonville Today as the HBCU prepares to identify its next aspirations.…

Featured image for “Jacksonville native hopes ‘Callas’ is next blossom of literary career”
Niveah Glover is a 20-year-old playwright and Jacksonville native whose first play, "Callas," will debut at the Jacksonville Arts and Music School on Friday, Aug. 1, 2025. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
23 hours ago

Jacksonville native hopes ‘Callas’ is next blossom of literary career

“Callas” will debut at the Jacksonville Arts and Music School on Friday, written by 20-year-old Niveah Glover.…

Featured image for “Hibernian captain says Sporting Jax fans are ‘incredible’ for women’s football”
Sporting Jax captain Sophie Jones, left, shares a moment with Hibernian Women captain Rachael Boyle during a news conference Wednesday, July 30, 2025, inside Visit Jacksonville headquarters. Sporting Jax will host the reigning Scottish Women's Premier League champion in its debut match. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
1 day ago

Hibernian captain says Sporting Jax fans are ‘incredible’ for women’s football

Women’s pro soccer will kick off Saturday as Sporting Jax takes on the Scottish champion Hibernian Women.…

Featured image for “BIT OF JOY | Celebrity Basketball Classic”
Betty Burney, founder of I'm A STAR Foundation, supports the celebrity basketball team during a July 26 basketball game crated to raise funds for unhoused students in Duval County Public Schools. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
July 28, 2025

BIT OF JOY | Celebrity Basketball Classic

The I’m A Star Foundation raised money for unhoused students in Duval County with its annual Celebrity Basketball Classic over…

Featured image for “Will McNeil Jr. plans to sue Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office over February arrest”
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, right, says he plans to sue the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office on behalf of Will McNeil Jr., left, following a February 2025 traffic stop that led to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office punching McNeil during his arrest. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
July 23, 2025

Will McNeil Jr. plans to sue Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office over February arrest

“The entire stop was not just pretextual, racially motivated, it was unlawful,” says McNeil’s attorney.…

Featured image for “Eastside awash in hope and angst over community benefits agreement”
A. Philip Randolph Boulevard is the business corridor of the historic Eastside. After a race riot in 1969, businesses fled and the community suffered from longterm under investment from the public and private sectors. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
July 17, 2025

Eastside awash in hope and angst over community benefits agreement

Residents, business owners and advocates want to ensure the city fulfills the promises it has made to the Eastside.…

Featured image for “Jacksonville may be hub for urban baseball renaissance”
Oklahoma's Kyson Witherspoon during an NCAA baseball game on Feb. 14, 2025, in Norman, Oklahoma. | Garett Fisbeck, AP
July 14, 2025

Jacksonville may be hub for urban baseball renaissance

Youth baseball coaches and nonprofits have sought to revive the game in Jacksonville’s urban communities.…

Featured image for “Authors seek to curb ‘summer slide’ as Duval gains in literacy”
Paris Richardson is shown with WJCT Public Media Education Coordinator Andrew Williams during a celebration May 20, 2025, at WJCT. Richardson is the author of a children's book, "The Not-So-Perfect Garden Project." | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
July 2, 2025

Authors seek to curb ‘summer slide’ as Duval gains in literacy

The 51 percent of Duval County third-grade students who scored a Level 3 or higher on the Florida Department of…

Featured image for “Jacksonville NAACP hears outlook on academic funding”
Johna Daniels, grants and project officer for the Early Learning Coalition of Duval, says federal funding cuts will have an effect on the organization. The coalition serves nearly 17,000 children from low-income families in Jacksonville. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
June 25, 2025

Jacksonville NAACP hears outlook on academic funding

The local NAACP and Upsilon Lambda chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity hosted a town hall on education.…

Featured image for “Star students create app to empower teen mental health”
I'm A Star Foundation students include the four who created the Empower Me app. (Front row, from left): Kenya Robinson, Calleigh Buchanan, Jamie Edwards, Jhi'nema Philyaw, Mari Dawson and Zamari Brown. (Back row, from left): Kristion Thompkins, Jordan Sanders, Jackson Sanders, Myles McLaughlin, William Heard and Aiden Wright. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
June 18, 2025

Star students create app to empower teen mental health

Students from the I’m A Star Foundation created Empower Me, which includes daily affirmations and exercises.…

Featured image for “Q&A | Why Jax native Kevin Sack wrote about race, resistance and forgiveness”
June 17, 2025

Q&A | Why Jax native Kevin Sack wrote about race, resistance and forgiveness

The Jacksonville Public Library will host Jacksonville native and Pulitzer Prize winner Kevin Sack on Friday.…

Featured image for “Jax nonprofits put $5M toward increasing homeownership”
LISC Jacksonville CEO Irvin "Pedro" Cohen returned to his alma mater, Raines High, to announce the creation of a $5 million fund that will spur homeownership in six historically underresourced neighborhoods in Jacksonville. He called it one of the highlights of his professional career. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
June 12, 2025

Jax nonprofits put $5M toward increasing homeownership

United Way will allocate $4 million, while LISC Jacksonville will provide another $1 million to developers to build homes in…

Featured image for “Jacksonville Journey Forward seeks $3 million budget for literacy, chronic absenteeism”
The school library at R.V. Daniels Elementary in February 2024. Duval County Public Schools closed the school at the end of hte 2025 academic year. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
June 6, 2025

Jacksonville Journey Forward seeks $3 million budget for literacy, chronic absenteeism

The Jacksonville Journey Forward board made budgetary suggestions for the 2025-26 fiscal year that begins Oct. 1 during its monthly…

Featured image for “Q&A | New 904Ward CEO outlines her plans amid shifting DEI landscape”
Audrieanna Burgin was named CEO of racial equity nonprofit 904Ward in June 2025. | Submitted
June 3, 2025

Q&A | New 904Ward CEO outlines her plans amid shifting DEI landscape

Audrieanna Burgin discusses her journey, her hometown and how she envisions the organization moving forward.…

Featured image for “Jax Pride Month celebration altered amid drawbridge confusion”
More than 100 people participated in the Pride in our Freedoms Community Bridge Lighting on Sunday, June 1, 2025, along the Acosta Bridge in Downtown Jacksonville. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
June 2, 2025

Jax Pride Month celebration altered amid drawbridge confusion

Demonstrators planned a celebration on the bridge, but the drawbridge was raised just as they approached.…

Featured image for “PHOTO ESSAY | Jacksonville schools mark closures with smiles amid somber celebrations”
Vin'Tavia Gaines, right, reads the fifth grade address during a promotion ceremony at Susie Tolbert Elementary on Friday, May 23, 2025. She is joined by classmate Danielle Fenner. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
May 29, 2025

PHOTO ESSAY | Jacksonville schools mark closures with smiles amid somber celebrations

Jacksonville Today captured the final gatherings at five Duval County elementary schools that will close or consolidate after the 2025…

Featured image for “Eastside park rededicated as symbol of community commitment”
Patrick Edmond says his grandfather, William "Buster" Ford, was a man who brought light into dark places. During a rededication of Buster Ford Checkerboard Park on Thursday, May 22, 2025, Edmond said his grandfather had faith in God, faith in people and faith in community change. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
May 27, 2025

Eastside park rededicated as symbol of community commitment

Residents, community leaders, nonprofits and even the Jaguars Foundation helped restore Buster Ford Checkerboard Park.…

Featured image for “‘Honey Dripper Lady’ eager to bring smiles to VyStar Ballpark”
Alice Kimbrough has owned the Honey Dripper House since 2008. She is an Eastside native who started the business as a way to supplement her teaching income. It has grown big enough to form a partnership with the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp baseball club. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
May 22, 2025

‘Honey Dripper Lady’ eager to bring smiles to VyStar Ballpark

The Jumbo Shrimp will pay homage to the Eastside treat by playing as the Honey Drippers this weekend.…

Featured image for “Jacksonville celebrates Florida’s Emancipation Day”
Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan, right, listens to Toni Bingham, center, and Marlena Smalls, right sing during a rememberance of Florida's Emancipation Day on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
May 20, 2025

Jacksonville celebrates Florida’s Emancipation Day

Jacksonville’s Emancipation Day celebration came less than a week after the U.S. Supreme Court heard an argument for overturning birthright…

Featured image for “A.L. Lewis fund expands grants as nonprofits face uncertainty”
Tim Johnson, the volunteer chairman of the A.L. Lewis Black Opportunity & Impact Fund, listens to Sharon Coon during a reception May 15, 2025, celebrating the 40 organizations that received funding from the fund this year. Coon is the founder of the Friends of Brentwood Library, a nonprofit that will use funding from the Lewis fund to sponsor a writer's festival this summer. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
May 19, 2025

A.L. Lewis fund expands grants as nonprofits face uncertainty

The A.L. Lewis Black Opportunity & Impact Fund will award two rounds of grants this year.…

Featured image for “Northeast Florida nonprofits get grants to address ‘heirs property’”
Jacksonville, seen here in the mid-1950s, has a higher-than-average rate of heirs' property. | State Archives of Florida/Johnson
May 16, 2025

Northeast Florida nonprofits get grants to address ‘heirs property’

The Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta allocated $5.9 million to 21 organizations in seven states to address heirs property.…

Featured image for “How one nonprofit helps Jacksonville scholars thrive”
Vivianna Rivera, left, and Netsury Lominy are two members of the Thrive Scholars Jacksonville high school class of 2025. The two announced their intentions to attend the University of Central Florida and the University of North Florida, respectively, during a celebration Tuesday, May 13, 2025, inside the Jessie Ball duPont Center. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
May 15, 2025

How one nonprofit helps Jacksonville scholars thrive

Thrive Scholars Jacksonville helps students from underserved and underrepresented backgrounds prepare for undergraduate life.…

Featured image for “Westside High students get early jump on medical careers”
Vivian Soto received her Certified Nursing Assistant pin during a ceremony Tuesday, May 6, 2025, at Ascension St. Vincent Riverside. Soto says she plans to become a traveling nurse. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
May 8, 2025

Westside High students get early jump on medical careers

Students in the school’s medical magnet program will receive both diplomas and certifcation as nursing assistants.…

Featured image for “Jax Shrimp return to friendly confines of VyStar Park”
David Carpenter will serve as the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp manager for the 2025 season. Carpenter made more than 200 appearances in the majors as a pitcher for six different clubs. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
May 6, 2025

Jax Shrimp return to friendly confines of VyStar Park

The Jumbo Shrimp’s 21-12 record through six weeks is their best since becoming a Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins…