Jenna Henderson ’23 Sc.M. never imagined her career would lead her to the intersection of technology, policy and leadership. A civil engineer by training, she built her early career designing infrastructure and implementing community-driven solutions. But as technology began reshaping how cities operate, Henderson saw an opportunity to drive innovation into public-sector governance.
When she found Brown University’s Master’s in Technology Leadership (MTL) program, she gained the skills and perspective to tackle complex challenges and shape the future of public service. Today, as Program Manager for the City of Fort Worth, she is at the forefront of implementing policies and tools that didn’t exist when she first entered the field.
A fork in the road
When Henderson considered her next career move, she faced a pivotal decision: take a more conventional approach to education or pursue a degree in technology leadership. "One option would get me places quickly; the other, I sensed, aligned with where I really needed to go, " she said. Choosing the degree, she added, didn’t just accompany her professional journey — it accelerated it and set her apart.
What set Brown’s MTL program apart was its interdisciplinary approach, combining leadership, technology and policy.
“I wanted a program that didn’t just focus on tech, business or policy in isolation, but brought them together through the lens of leadership,” she said. “This program wasn’t about theory alone - it was about preparing real-world leaders for the challenges of tomorrow’s uncertain needs.”
She was also drawn to Brown’s legacy and the strong cohort model. “On my first visit to campus, I was struck by the redstone rough-hewn masonry blocks that seemed strong, timeless and full of character,” she remembered. “They felt symbolic of academia itself: a durable foundation; an investment in something built to last. I wanted to be a part of that legacy.”
A pivotal moment: The capstone project
For Henderson, a defining moment in her career was the program’s capstone, where she had the opportunity to work on a real-world project that ultimately laid the foundation for her current work in public-sector innovation.
Collaborating with the City of Fort Worth, IBM and Google, she co-developed an artificial intelligence-driven asset management model using an open innovation framework. The project was an intersection of public-sector needs with private-sector technology, surfacing complex issues such as intellectual property ownership, ethical considerations in AI development, risk and the limits of model explainability - particularly when leveraging transfer learning. Complexities that continue to inform AI policy today.
“Through that experience, I gained hands-on skills and a deeper understanding of business models, value propositions and the real-world constraints that shape innovation,” she said. “The experience reinforced my realizations about the value of cross-sector collaboration in building responsible, scalable solutions.”
This direct engagement shaped her present role, where she now leads a new program within the City of Fort Worth and continues to shape discussions about the use of AI in the public sector.
