With expertise in research and writing, Jacob Johnson is LiKEN's Assistant Communications Director. He works across our five programs to develop educational materials that are rooted in empirical research and local experience. Jacob was born and raised in Wheelwright, Floyd County, KY—the one time Inland Steel company town. A proud “scholar from the holler,” his interests include Appalachian environmental history (particularly mountain top removal and the American Chestnut), commons, and the intersection of labor and civil rights movements in Appalachia. 

Jacob also serves as co-editor of Eastern Kentucky University's Accessible Appalachia: An Open-Access Introduction to Appalachian Studies, a textbook used in classrooms from the University of North Georgia to Harvard.