Features the information title, date, time and topic. Headshots for speakers Kendra Patterson and Jessica Troe are featured on the bottom. MassBudget and MASSCreative’s logos are in the bottom right corner.
MASSCreative’s Artivist Town Hall is a monthly webinar that connects artists and creatives with resources, training, and expert insights to support them in their creative practices and activism.
Each month, we welcome different guests to share their subject matter expertise during the first half of the program. In the second half, MASSCreative provides advocacy updates and opens the meeting for an informal town hall conversation where participants can ask questions, share their organizing challenges, and receive support from the community.
In March, we are welcoming Kendra Patterson and Jessica Troe from MassBudget to talk us through the ins and outs of Massachusett’s state budgeting process and where to direct your advocacy.
Please register in advance if you plan to attend.
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS:
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Jessica Troe is a Senior Policy Analyst at the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center, leading the analysis of the state budget.
Prior to joining MassBudget, Jessica worked at a variety of research organizations to advance equity in public policy. Most recently, she authored the First Focus on Children’s signature research publication, the Children’s Budget Book, to advocate for equity for children in the federal budget. Previously, at J-PAL North America she worked with state and local governments to design and implement randomized evaluations to alleviate poverty and on child care affordability at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston and the Center for American Progress.
Jessica holds a Master of Public Policy from the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Boston University. Originally from Colorado, she now lives in Somerville. -
Kendra Patterson is the Director of the Delivering on Equity Collective (DOE), a partnership anchored by the Massachusetts Communities Action Network (MCAN), the Massachusetts Voter Table (MVT), and the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center (MassBudget) with the membership of 20+ grassroots organizations. The Collective focuses on strengthening community voice and decision-making power by educating and engaging everyday residents in public budget processes, aiming for equitable investments in BIPOC and low-income communities.
Kendra is an organizing and policy practitioner who has managed outreach for political and issue campaigns that have shaped democracy in every region of the United States, including Nevada, Missouri, Michigan, Georgia, and Massachusetts. She comes to us from our trusted partner, the Massachusetts Voter Table, where she led field coordination of the Democracy HUBS—45 grassroots organizations in BIPOC and low-income communities across the Commonwealth. Notable campaigns include passing the Fair Share Amendment, the Work and Family Mobility Act, and advocacy in the implementation of Boston’s participatory budgeting process.
Kendra is a dynamic leader who centers her work in joy, dignity, creativity, and collaboration. In this transition to the Delivering on Equity Collective, Kendra is enthusiastic about weaving grassroots organizing with budget advocacy to advance community understanding and engagement within public budget processes.