White House Author

Raised in Montgomery County, Maryland, Brent studied economics at Pomona College in Claremont, CA. After receiving his B.A. in 2000, he joined the Peace Corps and served as a Community Tourism Development volunteer in eastern Bolivia from 2000 to 2002. After Peace Corps, Brent worked from 2004 to 2006 at Nur University, a private, community development-focused university founded to further Bolivia’s development and provide educational opportunities for underprivileged Bolivian youth. Brent’s community development work in Bolivia in the Peace Corps and at Nur University inspired him to seek a Master’s degree in Community Planning, which he was awarded from the University of Maryland, College Park in May 2009. Upon graduating with his master’s degree, Brent became a VISTA volunteer with Montgomery Housing Partnership where he has served since September 2009. Through this role, Brent helps targeted low- and moderate-income neighborhoods of the county address such issues as crime prevention, local scams, and neighborhood safety and beautification. His work involves organizing residents to come together on local issues and coordinate with planners and government leaders to bring about change. The Spanish language skills he developed through Peace Corps in Bolivia have proven invaluable in his current capacity in neighborhoods whose households are primarily non-English speaking. He has also raised over $65,000 for MHP and has recruited over 2,000 volunteers through Fannie Mae’s Help the Homeless Program, for which he also gave 24 talks on homelessness and affordable housing to local school and community groups and developed an interactive homelessness game.