My Story Vault: Libraries, Design, and Discipline with Jenny Wright

In this rich and personal episode of My Story Vault, Jenny Wright—Executive Director of the North Adams Partnership—joins Dr. Dennis Rebelo to reflect on the unexpected journey that brought her to community leadership in the Northern Berkshires. Raised in Altoona, Pennsylvania, Jenny describes a childhood marked by solitude, a love of books, and disciplined engagement with classical music and representational drawing. After facing a period of personal struggle in her late teens, Jenny found her way back to herself through structure, daily routines, and a deep reconnection with the public library—a place she credits with rediscovering an engaged life worth living. The library saved her life.

Jenny recounts how a single phrase from her piano teacher—“You’re better than this”—helped shift her trajectory and ultimately led to a design education at the Corcoran School in Washington, DC. Her career path, shaped by early roles in brand systems and design architecture, emphasized thoughtful listening and user-centered design. These skills now serve her in her current role, where she helps reconnect and align the city’s anchor institutions—MASS MoCA, MCLA, and the City of North Adam’s downtown community—through programs like the Reconnecting Communities initiative.

Throughout the conversation, Jenny reflects on her strengths as a “glue” figure—someone who helps others perform at their best by observing, listening, and arranging people and ideas into meaningful configurations. Whether drawing photorealistic birds, performing Rachmaninoff, or helping North Adams envision its future, Jenny's story reveals the power of incremental discipline, grounded optimism, and genuine curiosity.

Links:
North Adams Partnership:
https://northadamspartnership.org/

Berkshire Innovation Center Accelerator Program:
https://www.berkshireinnovationcenter.com/accelerator-program

Narrative Research Group:
https://narrativeresearchgroup.org/

For more information or to share a question or insight, please email Shannon [at] narrativeresearchgroup [dot] org

Produced by Nate Christy, BIC Studios.