Michael Jacoby Brown has worked for over 30 years as a community organizer
and trainer in a variety of settings. He has worked as a community organizer for
the Vermont Alliance, Massachusetts Fair Share, B’nai B’rith, The National
Jobs with Peace Campaign, Metropolitan Interfaith Congregations Acting for
Hope, and as a trainer and consultant for numerous community, labor, religious,
government and health organizations. He is also the founder and former
Executive Director of the Jewish Organizing Initiative, a community and labor
organizing training program. He has also worked as a high school teacher,
construction worker, founded and edited a community newspaper and been an
elected official. He has a BA from Columbia University and an MPA from The
Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He is the author of
Building Powerful Community Organizations: A Personal Guide to Creating
Groups that Can Solve Problems and Change the World. (Long Haul Press,
2007) He has served on the Board of Congregation Beth El, Sudbury, MA. He
also currently serves as a Board member of the National Organizers Alliance, a
national organization of labor and community organizers, and the Union of
Minority Neighborhoods, and provides training and consulting services to
unions and community groups. Current clients include SEIU-1199 Health Care
Workers East, The Dracut School System and the Dracut Teachers Association,
The Governor’s Youth Council and NeighborWorks America, JustAStart
Community Development Corporation, MassPort and others.