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 “Bringing books to life: Nonprofit hopes to spur teenage literacy”
April 13, 2023

Bringing books to life: Nonprofit hopes to spur teenage literacy

Washington Cultural Arts and Services will hold “readers theaters” around Jacksonville as a way to promote reading.…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “North Riverside program reviving neighborhood one home at a time”
Annie Mae Daniels has lived in her North Riverside home for more than 60 years. Her grandson, Zarian, lives with her. Funding from the North Riverside CDC Home Repair Program widened the doorways and allowed the home to be more wheelchair accessible. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
April 9, 2023

North Riverside program reviving neighborhood one home at a time

A $1.2 million program is aimed at helping North Riverside residents improve their home values in a predominantly Black neighborhood…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “Duval wants 1,000 Black and brown male teachers; it’s having a hard time keeping the ones it has ”
Jorge Estevez and Eligio Calatayud are Spanish teachers at Mandarin High School. Education is their second career, Estevez, left, had a background in law enforcement and Calatayud, right, spent decades in the financial services industry. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
April 4, 2023

Duval wants 1,000 Black and brown male teachers; it’s having a hard time keeping the ones it has 

Duval’s is facing dual challenges of attracting and retaining its male teachers as it tries to diversify staff to reflect…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “More help coming for people with rent and utility troubles”
March 30, 2023

More help coming for people with rent and utility troubles

Jacksonville City Council this week provided $2 million in additional money for the Emergency Rental Assistance Program.…

By Will Brown

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March 23, 2023

DeSantis spotlights civics education in Orange Park visit

Gov. Ron DeSantis and Education Commissioner Manny Diaz awarded seven Clay County teachers $3,000 checks for completing a Civics Seal…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “PHOTO ESSAY | March 2023 Duval Elections”
Connie Hodges, left, and Carter Jones, right, may have supported different candidates; but the two say they developed a good rapport and commonality as they campaigned for Joshua Hicks and Ron Salem outside Grace Church of Avondale. Jacksonville had less than 26 percent voter turnout for its 2023 Unitary election on March 21, 2023. A late surge allowed local voting to surpass the 24.5 percent voter turnout in 2019 municipal elections. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
March 21, 2023

PHOTO ESSAY | March 2023 Duval Elections

Voters share why they participated in the March 2023 Jacksonville elections, which had just 25.6% turnout.…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “3 takeaways from the Jacksonville mayoral debate”
Jacksonville University hosted a mayoral debate between the seven candidates vying for election this spring. They were placed in alphabetical order: Omega Allen, LeAnna Cumber, Daniel Davis, Donna Deegan, Al Ferraro, Audrey Gibson and Frank Keasler. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
March 9, 2023

3 takeaways from the Jacksonville mayoral debate

Here’s what the candidates had to say about infrastructure needs, their Downtown plan, and the importance of the St. Johns…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “Popular e-scooters are spreading in Jacksonville”
March 7, 2023

Popular e-scooters are spreading in Jacksonville

You’ll soon be able to snag a Bird or Lime scooter across Downtown, Brooklyn, the SouthBank and the Sports and…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “Jacksonville gives a boost to Black and Hispanic businesses”
March 6, 2023

Jacksonville gives a boost to Black and Hispanic businesses

Nearly a dozen Black and Hispanic-owned companies in Jacksonville will be enrolled in a program aimed at helping small businesses…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “Jacksonville identifies industries ripe for growth”
March 3, 2023

Jacksonville identifies industries ripe for growth

The Jax Chamber’s economic development arm has established a five-year regional plan focused on agribusiness, biomedical research and corporate operations.…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “How the Union Terminal Warehouse connects with the Eastside community”
The Union Terminal Warehouse is a 330,000 square foot former grocery warehouse on Jacksonville's Eastside that is being converted into a residential, retail and commercial space that is being renovated by Atlanta-based Columbia Ventures. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today.
March 1, 2023

How the Union Terminal Warehouse connects with the Eastside community

The developer remaking the warehouse on Jacksonville’s Eastside has worked with residents to integrate the project into the community.…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “Pioneering Black aviator inspires a new age”
February 23, 2023

Pioneering Black aviator inspires a new age

Bessie Coleman Academy in Jacksonville celebrated Black History Month with a relative of the trailblazing pilot.…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “Black diamonds: Imagining the future of Jacksonville’s century-long baseball legacy ”
Ribault outfielder Braylin Clarke lays down a bunt during the High School Heritage Classic on Feb. 15, 2023. Clarke reached base twice and scored the game's opening run in Ribault's 8-3 win. His mother says he and his twin syster Brayla have played baseball and softball since they were three. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
February 21, 2023

Black diamonds: Imagining the future of Jacksonville’s century-long baseball legacy 

Black baseball evangelists are trying to attract young players in a city with a rich history with the sport.…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “Jacksonville exhibition showcases Black Americans through arts”
February 20, 2023

Jacksonville exhibition showcases Black Americans through arts

Nearly 100 people filed into the Jessie Ball duPont Center on Saturday to attend “Free Press,” a conversation about Black…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “‘Little Free Diverse Libraries’ find a home during book debate”
February 16, 2023

‘Little Free Diverse Libraries’ find a home during book debate

904Ward and Yellow House Art are making diverse authors available in Jacksonville to fill “book deserts.”…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “What makes a good City Council member? Jax City Hall alumni weigh in ”
February 13, 2023

What makes a good City Council member? Jax City Hall alumni weigh in 

Jacksonville’s City Council will have a new look on July 1. Eight of 15 council races do not have an…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “Florida Black Expo returns to Jax Thursday ”
External general view of the NFL football Jacksonville Jaguars' stadium, Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2023, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Gary McCullough)
February 8, 2023

Florida Black Expo returns to Jax Thursday 

The Florida Black Expo returns to Jacksonville on Thursday, February 9, 2023.…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “Soaring prices squeeze renters in Jax”
January 31, 2023

Soaring prices squeeze renters in Jax

Nearly half of Jacksonville’s renters are “cost-burdened,” according to a study by the University of North Florida.…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “Out East Jacksonville takes big step toward national historic designation”
A. Philip Randolph Boulevard is the commercial hub of the Eastside. Some of the commercial buildings here are among the oldest in Jacksonville because they were not destroyed during the Great Fire of 1901. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
January 24, 2023

Out East Jacksonville takes big step toward national historic designation

The Eastside Historic District is one step closer to joining the National Register of Historic Places following a decision from…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “Enrolling your child in Duval County Public Schools | JAX TODAY GUIDE”
The Duval Schools administration building. | Claire Heddles, Jacksonville Today
January 19, 2023

Enrolling your child in Duval County Public Schools | JAX TODAY GUIDE

If you’re looking to enroll a first-time student in Duval Schools for this coming fall, here’s what you need to…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “Downtown board’s deferral of planned LaVilla gas station hailed as community victory ”
Caption: First Coast Energy looks to convert portions of this LaVilla property into a mixed-use development with a Daily’s Place gas station. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
January 17, 2023

Downtown board’s deferral of planned LaVilla gas station hailed as community victory 

A Jan. 12 deferral means the Downtown Improvement Authority will bring the DDRB’s concerns to Jacksonville-based First Coast Energy before…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “PHOTO ESSAY | Jacksonville’s 42nd Annual MLK Holiday Grand Parade”
More than 160 organizations, businesses, politicians, youth groups and stuend organizations participated in the 42nd Martin Luther King Holiday Grand Parade took place along Water Street on Monday, Jan. 16, 2023. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
January 16, 2023

PHOTO ESSAY | Jacksonville’s 42nd Annual MLK Holiday Grand Parade

Hundreds marched in the 42nd annual MLK Holiday Grand Parade on Monday morning in Jacksonville.…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “Jacksonville officials, local civil rights leaders continue to celebrate MLK. Separately. ”
Martin Luther King Jr. speaks in St. Augustine in June 1964. He was arrested in St. Augustine that month, alongside others from the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, while attempting to eat in a segregated restaurant. | State Archive of Florida 
January 12, 2023

Jacksonville officials, local civil rights leaders continue to celebrate MLK. Separately. 

Friday will mark the fifth straight year Jacksonville will have separate breakfasts honoring Martin Luther King.…

By Will Brown

Featured image for “Schoolkids get a lift with free Jacksonville bus rides”
January 5, 2023

Schoolkids get a lift with free Jacksonville bus rides

Hundreds of Jacksonville students have been riding JTA buses to school since the free service began a year ago.…

By Will Brown