Who Is Sheinelle Jones? Meet Jenna Bush Hager’s New Today Co-Anchor

by

Jenna Bush Hager has found her forever friend. 

Since Hoda Kotb left in January, Jenna Bush Hager has shared her seat at the Today With Jenna & Friends desk with around 60 different guest hosts, including stars like Brooke Shields, Olivia Munn, and Scarlett Johansson. She began the show on December 9th by announcing some important breaking news.

Jenna Bush Hager announced that Sheinelle Jones will be her new co-host on Today with Jenna & Sheinelle, starting January 12th. Bush Hager expressed her excitement, saying she couldn’t wait to share Jones with viewers, praising her as both a talented broadcaster and someone who perfectly embodies the spirit of the show.

The experienced journalist has been open with her audience about a very difficult time in her life.

Since her husband, Uche Ojeh, passed away in May after fighting an aggressive brain cancer called glioblastoma, Jones has been open about her experience with grief. They had been married for 17 years.

During a November interview with Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, stars of Wicked: For Good, she described watching the second part of the Broadway show as a deeply moving experience she hadn’t realized she was longing for.

Watching the characters Glinda and Elphaba transform inspired Jones. She realized, ‘If they can find strength and courage through their journey, I can find it in my own life too.’

Before appearing with Bush Hager on December 9th, she found strength and confidence in a special shirt lent to her by Ojeh, as well as encouragement from her children: 16-year-old Kayin, and twins Clara and Uche, who are 13.

Jones shared on Today that her family was overjoyed for her. She described their home being filled with much-needed happiness, explaining that after returning from leave, she made it a priority to pursue joy, and this moment was a perfect example of that.

Before Jones begins her journey, let’s take a moment to review what she’s already accomplished.

Sheinelle Jones, originally from Philadelphia, developed her passion for language and stories growing up in Wichita, Kansas. In a 2024 interview with Northwestern Magazine, she described how her mother, Sheila Kinnard, intentionally filled their home with positive affirmations. She remembers seeing inspiring quotes, like ‘If you can see it, you can be it,’ even in her eighth-grade bathroom.

She was a typical high schooler – a cheerleader, clarinet player, and involved in student government. Her bedroom walls were covered with pictures of her idols: pop star Janet Jackson and news personalities, including local Wichita favorite Cindy Klose from KWCH 12.

Oh my gosh, you will NOT believe how she did it! Ever since she was little, Maya Jones has DREAMED of being a real news reporter. And she actually landed an internship at the local CBS station! It was totally thanks to her grandma’s friend from church – seriously, that woman is amazing! – but Maya totally deserved it, and I knew she’d make it happen. I’m SO proud!

I’ll never forget when she spoke at Northwestern’s Medill School convocation in 2018. Surrounded by all those inspiring quotes, she shared how she actually visualized herself succeeding. She described picturing herself in a classic black-and-white headshot, right up there with the news anchors she admired. She said she did it so often, it almost felt like she was manifesting her future, and eventually, it became her reality. It was incredibly powerful to hear.

From the moment she arrived at Northwestern University, Jones was determined to succeed. She started by interning at an NBC station in Wichita, and then persistently contacted BET Networks until they offered her a summer internship, even though it was unpaid. To make ends meet while in Washington, D.C., she worked at a Rainbow clothing store and stayed with her older sister.

Using the skills she gained from studying journalism, Spanish, and public speaking, Jones began her broadcasting career at an NBC station in Springfield, Illinois. She then moved on to become an evening news anchor and reporter for a Fox station in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

She then spent nine years with Fox’s Emmy Award-winning Good Day Philadelphia. In 2014, Jones—the daughter of Kinnard and U.S. District Court Judge C. Darnell Jones II, and one of five children—joined Weekend Today. She became a co-host of the third hour of Today in 2019 and eventually co-hosted Today with Jenna & Sheinelle alongside Jenna Bush Hager.

In January 2025, the mother of Kayin, Clara, and Uche explained her departure from the desk she shared with co-hosts Craig Melvin and Savannah Guthrie in a post on Instagram. She had quietly stepped away in December 2024.

Jones shared that they are focusing on a family health issue. They expressed gratitude for the support of their colleagues at the Today Show and their viewers, saying their kindness is deeply appreciated.

Viewers learned the full extent of Savannah Jones’ personal struggles in May. Savannah Guthrie shared the heartbreaking news that her husband of 17 years, Uche Ojeh, had died after a brave fight with glioblastoma, a fast-moving and aggressive type of brain cancer. She described the news as being shared with “profound sadness.”

Jones has turned her deep sadness into a lesson for her children: it’s okay to feel and express emotions. Speaking on Today in September 2025, she explained that she teaches them to see sadness as temporary, like rain. “I’ve learned to accept the sadness when it comes, to let it flow and clear the air, instead of avoiding tears,” she said. She now views grief as a cleansing process, welcoming it with acceptance: “It’s okay for it to come, and we can sit with it for a while.”

Jones used the same cleverness that defined her career when she first saw her future husband. She jokingly told Northwestern Magazine that she pretended to be a tour guide, leading the high school senior around the campus even though she was on her way to class. She admitted she did it because she thought he was cute.

After dating for eight years and a couple of playful mix-ups – once with a bracelet and again during a vacation to Cancun – they finally arrived back where their love story began, ready to plan a future together. They envisioned a long life ahead as a couple.

Jones shared on Today in 2018 that they were visiting Northwestern University when her partner suggested they go to their favorite place by the lake, even though it was raining. She was reluctant to go out in the rain, but he persuaded her, and then he got down on one knee.

She married a Nigerian-born consultant, who was a managing partner at UAO Consulting and enjoyed competing in triathlons, in Philadelphia in September 2007. They later had a son, Kayin, in August 2009, and twins, Clara and Uche, in July 2012.

I always want my kids to see themselves as a team and to look out for one another,” she shared with Today.

During her third week back at Today, Sheinelle Jones sat in the Jenna & Friends chair for the first time. Jenna Hager Bush surprised her friend with a heartfelt gesture: inviting six of Jones’ closest friends to appear on the show, a group Hager affectionately called “The Secret Society of Sheinelle” and said helped Jones recover and feel whole.

I was one of the sixty people who got to sit with Jenna Hager after Hoda Kotb stepped down, and I overheard a guest, Jones, telling her something really sweet. He basically wished her luck on whatever date she was on, hoping she’d feel good enough about it that she’d be excited to hear from the person the next day! It was a really charming moment.

Reader, she did. 

Before her first show on December 8th, Jones put on an old shirt of her husband’s and celebrated with her three children. She shared that she said a quick prayer, telling herself it was time to connect with someone she considered more than a friend – like a sister. Jenna Hager Bush agreed, saying there was no one she’d rather share the experience with.

Read More

2025-12-09 21:18