Jenna Bryant

Jenna serves as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at MDC, providing organization-wide leadership to advance MDC’s strategy, strengthen its systems and operations, and align people and resources around its mission. She brings more than two decades of experience in economic mobility, workforce and economic development, organizational strategy, research and analysis, and community engagement.

Her work is grounded in understanding how race, place, gender, and systems shape access to opportunity and upward economic mobility. Her expertise spans workforce and postsecondary systems, financial security, and the policies and institutions that influence economic opportunity. She brings rigorous analysis, community insight, and cross-sector strategy to complex systems challenges, with a focus on dismantling structural barriers that limit economic advancement for historically marginalized communities.

Jenna returned to MDC to lead its Economic Security and Mobility work after previously serving in several roles with the organization from 2011 to 2022. Earlier in her career, she served as an economist with the North Carolina Department of Commerce, conducting economic analysis and modeling to inform state economic and workforce policy and decision-making. She also led digital inclusion and community engagement work for the City of Durham and conducted regional economic and workforce research at Regional Technology Strategies.

Jenna holds a bachelor’s degree in international business with a concentration in finance from Howard University and a master’s degree in economics from North Carolina State University. She is an Elizabeth Dole Foundation Caregiver Fellow, advancing policy and advocacy efforts that elevate caregiver voices and strengthen supports for military and veteran caregivers. She serves on the boards of the Camber Foundation and Digital Durham and previously served on the Durham Technical Community College Board of Trustees.