"Creativity fuels the innovation of practical skills and is crucial when considering development at the intersection of equity and inclusion," says Jesa. "Diversifying funding channels and revenue streams not only mitigate financial risks, but also amplifies an organization's mission visibility and viability.”
Jesa Townsend
Founder and CEO of Fund & Found; need an entire team behind you? Click
Need a Senior Consultant? Read below.
After stewarding more than $29.5 million in public and private fundraising for organizations, including landmark federal initiatives such as the Affordable Connectivity Program, Jesa Townsend came to a clear and enduring understanding. Fundraising, at its best, is not transactional. It is relational. It is built on trust. And when done right, it becomes the bridge between bold vision and lasting impact.
Jesa Townsend is a Los Angeles Business Journal 2026 Women’s Leadership Award nominee and a senior executive in fund development and community strategy, known for operating at the highest levels of philanthropy, education, and the arts. With more than a decade of experience, she has advised institutions, partnered with government leaders, and guided mission-driven organizations toward sustainable growth and systemic change. She is also a 2023 Success Magazine “50 Women of Influence” nominee in the Trailblazers Issue and a finalist for the 2023 L.A. Works Civic Leadership and Impact Award. These recognitions reflect not only achievement, but influence.
What distinguishes Jesa is not simply the scale of the resources she has mobilized. It is the clarity of purpose behind them.
She founded Fund & Found, LLC from a place of conviction. As she puts it, “I believe in walking alongside leaders who are doing the work, not to take the spotlight, but to help them carry it further. Too often, the most transformative ideas come from communities with the fewest resources. That is a reality I refuse to accept.”
Over the course of her career, Jesa has worked alongside senior government officials and some of the nation’s most respected institutions, including Goodwill SF Bay, Aspire Public Schools, Emile Cohl Atelier, Meals on Wheels, Whittier College, the Orange County School of the Arts, Skydance Animation, the National Charity League, and Johns Hopkins University researchers. She has raised millions in funding, built and led high-performing development teams, and constructed cross-sector coalitions that move ideas from aspiration to execution.
Her leadership extends into governance and systems-level influence. Jesa serves on the boards of City Hearts, Aspire Public Schools, and as a founding member of Nevada State University’s Arts and Culture Advisory Council, where she has contributed more than 11 years of service. She is also a certified facilitator with the National Center to Reframe Aging and an advocate for the Epilepsy Foundation. Her work reflects a commitment not only to strategy but to humanity.
Jesa is also a celebrated visual artist. She received the 2012 Heroes and Hearts Award from the San Francisco General Hospital Foundation for her ability to bring together art and social purpose. Her work has reached more than 30 cause-based organizations and cities across the country, including Tempe, Arizona; Jasper, Indiana; Iowa City, Iowa; Salem, Oregon; Manhattan, New York; Santa Ana, California; Henderson, Nevada; Phoenix, Arizona; Wilmington, Delaware; and Los Angeles, California, with a broader footprint spanning more than 28 cities. Her collaborations include the Arizona Science Center, Anaheim GardenWalk on Disney Way, Life is Beautiful, and St. Jude’s Ranch for Children.
Her foundation in education includes teaching across K through 12 systems and at the undergraduate level. She also partnered with cities to design public art that gave voice to communities and complex social issues. This work helped shape a career defined by both intellectual rigor and creative execution.
Academically, Jesa studied at the University of Edinburgh and Lorenzo de’ Medici in Florence before earning her Master’s degree with distinction from Johns Hopkins University, where she was awarded two academic fellowships. She is now completing a second Master’s in Clinical Psychology at Pepperdine University, where she received a Graduate Scholarship, was nominated to the Honor Society for Collegiate Leadership and Achievement, and was inducted into Psi Chi, the International Honor Society of Psychology. Her studies continue to inform her expertise in human behavior, leadership, and systems change.
Her voice carries beyond the organizations she serves. Jesa has shared podiums with United States Senators, contributed to federal focus groups, presented at the National Academy of Sciences, and spoken at conferences including AGLSP and the Pop Culture Association. Her recent lightning talk at Johns Hopkins University’s Earth Day 50 celebration emphasized the role of the arts in bridging ideological divides and strengthening civic dialogue.
Her commitment to equity is also deeply personal. She comes from a family legacy connected to one of the most influential women leaders of the American civil rights movement. That lineage reinforces her belief that leadership is not about personal advancement, but about service, justice, and the responsible stewardship of resources for the common good.
At her core, Jesa Townsend is a systems thinker and a builder of people, partnerships, and possibility.
A farm girl at heart who has traveled to 39 countries, she brings both global perspective and grounded humility to her work. Whether advising on national funding strategy, shaping policy conversations, or creating art that reflects community voice, she leads with discipline, empathy, and an unwavering belief.
Real change does not happen in isolation.
It happens when people come together, with intention and courage, to build something better.
Existing initiatives, partnerships, or clients: login here.
