Jenise Brown
Museum Educator, Carnegie Museum of Natural History 

Jenise Brown was the leader (and is now the president) of an effort to organize and support a now-ratified union, the United Museum Workers, at the Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh.

“I think the thing I hope to accomplish the most is to ensure that all different types of people are able to both work and thrive at our workplace,” Brown says.

This year, she helped create a contract that brings the four museums’ minimum wage to $16 per hour, establishes basic rights for workers and provides paid time off for part-time workers beyond the minimum required by law.

In her role as a museum educator, Brown works to cultivate a love of the natural world in the young people that the museum serves. “[I want to] help create a museum that is an anchor for Pittsburgh, where the broader community feels welcome and sees themself as part of the experience,” she says.