Jennifer Conn
Akron ReporterJennifer Conn joined WKSU in February 2019 as Akron reporter.
A Northeast Ohio native, Jennifer has covered Akron news for cleveland.com and Crain’s Akron Business. She was also a member of the inaugural staff of The Devil Strip, and wrote long-form features on Akron’s burgeoning music scene, the city’s punk roots and its historic downtown.
Earlier in her career, Jennifer was a business reporter for Crain Communications’ national trade magazines, covering scrap metal, recycling and municipal incineration for Waste News and the retail tire industry for Tire Business. She also served as regional reporter for Record Publishing’s weekly newspapers.
As a freelance writer, Jennifer has covered numerous industries, including the automotive after-market, cyber security, herbal healing and the environment. Her features have also appeared in literary magazines, including Belt Akron.
As a communications professional, Jennifer was vice president of communications at Akron Community Foundation, and senior communications development officer at the Summa Hospitals Foundation. She also served as senior writer at AKHIA Public Relations and Marketing Communications.
Jennifer also worked as an adjunct professor at Kent State and the University of Akron, teaching newswriting, English composition and English as a Second Language.
She earned a bachelor’s degree in English and a master’s degree in journalism from Kent State University. She is currently working on a post master’s certificate in Teaching English as a Second Language.
She is a Cuyahoga Valley National Park enthusiast, owns two kayaks (one banana yellow, one psychedelic purple) and served on the board that launched Akron's dog park.
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Reports from around the country show journalists arrested and some seriously injured by police during the recent protests over the death of George Floyd.… -
A Tallmadge teen is recovering after being hit by a pickup truck during protests last Saturday in downtown Akron.Sam Borrell, 18, and some of his friends… -
University of Akron trustees on Friday approved a number of long-term changes intended to keep the university solvent despite lost revenue from the… -
A funding crisis at the Akron Art Museum launched an investigation that has now led to the resignation of Director Mark Masuoka.In recent months, Masuoka… -
Despite the global pandemic, the Akron Police Academy has continued training its first class of recruits since 2008. Akron’s academy became a casualty of… -
Akron’s recycling program has changed over the past few years, as the value of recycled materials has fluctuated.Now, as part of the fallout from the… -
When we think about frontline responders, we usually think about people who save lives and rush into burning buildings. But in this pandemic, many… -
Construction crews working on Akron’s Main Street Corridor project have been busy throughout the pandemic, keeping the city’s $31 million project on… -
The city of Akron has called eight furloughed employees back to work to create a decontamination team to help protect first responders.The team’s job is… -
In the lead-up to the projected peak of coronavirus cases in Ohio, Akron’s safety forces are preparing. The city established a temporary self-quarantine…
