She is a bubbly young woman who just turned 31, trying to find herself after a shocking breakup with her boyfriend, whom she caught cheating. She has been a teacher since 2006 and she loves to play the handbells. Jess enjoys crafting, but doesn't have much time for it anymore. She also writes Nancy Drew fan-fiction. She needed a new place to live due to breaking up with her boyfriend, so she moved in with three men named Nick, Schmidt and Coach. Her best friend is a model named Cece. Following Coach's departure, she now lives with Winston instead. When the show begins, Jess is a school teacher in her late 20s. In the pilot, she has an explosive breakup with her boyfriend who was cheating on her. She moves out of the apartment that they shared, and ends up living in a bachelor pad with Nick, Schmidt, and Winston. Jess brings an over the top girly vibe to the former bachelor pad.