John Rex Endowment

At JRE, we believe that sometimes, great minds don’t have to think alike. For example, someone with a finance background is going to identify separate opportunities than a healthcare professional. A research expert will have different ideas than an education leader. That’s why our board of directors is a diverse team with a wide range of lived experiences.

Our board members are some of the smartest people we know, and we are so, so grateful for their service.

As we look toward 2025, several board members are completing their board terms with JRE. These board members include Matt Leatherman, Warren Ludwig, John Rusher and LaTasha Winstead.

Stay tuned as we highlight each of these board members, their work and their achievements in the coming months – and then introduce you to our new board members, too!

We’re thrilled to announce that Ashley Ahlers has joined the JRE team as the new Director of Partnerships and Communication!

“When we reimagined this role, we knew we wanted to hire someone with deep communications experience – but also someone who understands our community, who is energized by building more partnerships, who is passionate about our racial justice focus,” said Kellan Moore, JRE President and CEO. “Ashley embodies all of this and much more. We’re excited to work with her and drive our mission forward.”

You can “meet” Ashley here: https://www.johnrexendowment.org/news/welcoming-our-new-director-of-partnerships-and-communications.

What does embracing a "whole child mindset" mean to you?

In our work, it includes thinking about what impacts children's social emotional health — from living in safe, healthy housing to equitable education. Then, we work with grant partners, helping them build their capacity to fully understand how to provide proper supports to enhance children’s social emotional health.

Here, Dr. Balow breaks down his thoughts on the whole child mindset, mental health and social emotional learning.

SEL and mental health: Apples to apples? | Renaissance Learn the difference between SEL and mental health and why a whole child approach is best.