Meet our new Ward 7 Community Connectors

Let’s be real. This year, many of us wanted to rinse the residue of 2025 off like a bad dye job. But as the lead Community Connector for The 51st, last year was not all bad. In fact, I look back fondly on my work building connections with Ward 7 residents. Our team visited multiple venues, building more connections across communities.

This year is no different. Thanks to a grant from the Listening Post Collective, we’re attempting to survey at least 450 Ward 7 residents to hear what they want from local news. I can’t do this alone, though. So we’re super excited to welcome two new members to our Community Connector team.

Jennifer Gray, a Ward 7 resident, will be representing us at in-person events. She recently graduated from HumanitiesDC’s Community Journalism Program and wants to be more community-oriented.

A D.C. native, Jennifer has a great love for the District. “There's a level of pride we have because Black people mean something in this city,” says Gray, who also joined the team because of the creative freedom it requires. For her, community connection means “creating spaces that allow us to be the best versions of ourselves — to shine a light on what is possible.”

William Clarke IV, who currently resides in Bloomingdale, is our new digital Community Connector. Though he’s lived in different parts of the country, he’s spent many years in the District, and now considers it home.

“D.C. has a distinct style that sets trends, often without even trying,” Clarke says. “There’s a heartbeat here — a soul, a spirit, a flow that moves through the city. That energy is real. That’s D.C.”

As an artist who has built a body of work rooted in film photography, portrait journalism, and community-centered storytelling, Clarke hopes to bring his unique vision to The 51st. 

For him, community connections are more than just words. “Community is a verb. It’s an action. It’s not just a place on a map. It’s how people show up for one another, how they create platforms for each other, how they protect, uplift, and champion one another," he says.

Both Gray and Clarke will support community outreach, survey collection, and event participation to ensure Ward 7 residents see themselves reflected in The 51st’s reporting and programming.

Let’s welcome our newest members to the team. We hope to see you out and about in Ward 7 real soon.