Full Bio
Jonathan Palmer served as the sixth Executive Director for Hallie Q. Brown Community Center, Inc. (HQB), from 2008-2023. HQB is a 95-year old African American, nonprofit social service agency open to all with a primary focus on the historic Rondo Community (nka Summit University neighborhood) of Saint Paul, Minnesota and the Twin Cities metro area. Brought in as a change agent, Jonathan successfully led the effort to restore the historic organization to financial health and full service and launching a historical archive. The organization was founded in 1929, coming out of the settlement house movement, and today has evolved from an independent human services provider to a multi-service center over the years and is the administrative body of the Martin Luther King Center. HQB operates in seven core program areas: Early Childhood Education, Youth Enrichment, Basic Needs (Emergency Food & Clothing), Seniors, Historical Archives, Anti-Racism Awareness and Multi-Service Hub Center Administration. which houses other agencies offering specialized services and programs, including the nationally recognized Penumbra Theatre Company.
Prior to coming to HQB, Jonathan served as the Director of the Minneapolis Empowerment Zone (EZ), a federally-funded community renewal initiative through the Department of Housing and Urban Development administered by the City of Minneapolis that worked to improve the quality of life for residents in the most impacted areas of Minneapolis and bring about systemic and direct change through economic and community development strategies. Before heading the EZ, Jonathan was the Executive Director of the Jordan Area Community Council (JACC), the citizen participation and Neighborhood Revitalization Program (NRP) contract organization for the Jordan Neighborhood.
A native of the Washington D.C. Metro area, Jonathan first moved to Minnesota in 1989 during a hiatus from Morehouse College, to mentor under his uncle, Gleason Glover, past President of the Minneapolis Urban League for 26 years. Jonathan is a 1994 graduate (Class of 1991) of Morehouse where he received his BA in Psychology with a minor in Theatre. He is currently in the process of completing an MA in Public Affairs from the Humphrey Institute at the University of Minnesota. In 2022, he received a Certificate from Loyola University, Quinlan School of Business for the Executive Leadership Institute program. In 2020, he received a Certificate from Georgetown University McDonough School of Business for the New Strategies program conducted by Business for Impact.
Jonathan holds a wealth of experience in community-based activism, leadership and volunteer work throughout his life in Minnesota and across the country. Currently, he sits on the Board of Directors for MDI; Minnesota Costumers for a Cause (CFAC), the Schubert Club, Rondo Center for DIverse Expression. Metropolitan Alliance of Connected Communities (MACC), and the Charities Review Council where he serves as Chair of the Governance Committee. In 2021 he served as Chair of the North Service Area Master Plan Committee Community Advisory Committee for the Minneapolis Park and Recreations Board, served on the Governor’s Council for the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday, and is a member of the Skylight Club. He is the Director of Heritage and Minnesota Commissioner for the International Clan MacFarlane Society, Inc. and a Fellow in the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland.
In 2021, he received the NAACP’s Outstanding Servant Leadership Award from the Roy Wilkins Saint Paul Chapter. In 2018, he received a proclamation from the Ramsey County Board of Commissioners and a proclamation from the Mayor of the City of Saint Paul naming October 6, 2018 Jonathan Palmer Day along with a Hallie’s Heroes award all to celebrate his decade of service with HQB and significant accomplishments in turning the organization around and preserving this historic community institution; in 2017, he was named one of the inaugural Heroes of the Rondo Commemorative Plaza; in 2014, he received the Sullivan Ballou award for his work on Project Superhero; in 2011 the Leap Forward for Youth Collaborative Adult Leadership award; in 2004, he received the Hennepin County Attorney Community Leadership Award; in 1999 a Commendation for Heroism and Bravery from the City of Minneapolis. His poem “My Neighborhood,” was selected for Stevens Square-Loring Heights Community Mural and can be seen in the 1800 block of Nicollet Avenue. He has also performed with the Morehouse College Glee Club for several years most notably with Jessye Norman for the 1993 Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration; the annual Christmas with Robert Shaw program; and with Stevie Wonder, Trisha Yearwood and Gloria Estefan for the Closing Ceremonies of the Games of the XXVI Olympiad (1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, GA). He is an avid historian and gives presentations and lectures on African, African American and Scottish history and culture as well as Systemic Racism, Critical Race Theory, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI). He is an artist, poet, singer, genealogist and urban superhero working hard to make a difference in the communities he serves. Jonathan lives in North Minneapolis.
