Lisa Chester

Chief Development Officer

Lisa Chester is a widely respected and award-winning connector, innovator, and advocate for transformative initiatives that expand opportunity, build community, and foster change. With deep expertise in leadership, strategy, change management, and integrated marketing, her cross-sector career spans local government, national nonprofits (education and economic opportunity), and the media industry.

As Chief Development Officer, Lisa serves as the strategic architect to lead business development and funding strategies to align mission, impact, deepen donor engagement, and diversify revenue streams to drive long-term financial sustainability.

As a human-centered business executive and data-driven strategist, Lisa is known for advancing organizational transformation through innovation and thoughtful leadership. She previously directed fundraising, philanthropic partnerships, special projects, events, and development communications at the Southern Education Foundation which resulted in high-value contributions from national and regional grantors such as the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, Facebook, Woodward Fund, and other partners to support K–12 and post-secondary education. Notably, she also developed the concept for the HBCU Cornerstone Initiative-to strengthen liberal arts education through transformative texts at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in partnership with the Teagle Foundation, which later provided over $1 million in grant funding to strengthen humanities education at five HBCUs.

Prior to her current role, Lisa served as the Chief Strategy Officer for Rockdale County (GA) government, where she drove countywide innovation and transformation through the development of its most recent strategic plan. Her influence reflects a deep understanding of strategic planning, public-private partnerships, and performance measurement rooted in social equity and long-term sustainability.

Additionally, Lisa served as executive director leading Warrick Dunn Charities (WDC), a national nonprofit focused on economic opportunity and housing stability for nearly five years. There, she oversaw business operations and administration, financial resource management, programs, and strategy, working closely with professional athletes, National Football League, NFL Football teams, corporate sponsors, and philanthropic leaders to uplift families and communities through access to education opportunities, affordable housing, and financial stability.

Lisa also brings 14 years of corporate media experience; her earlier career includes more than a decade in the media and entertainment industry, where she held marketing and strategy roles at Fortune 500 companies, Turner Broadcasting (now WarnerMedia) and McCann WorldGroup. Having managed national campaigns for iconic brands—spearheaded multimillion-dollar integrated marketing efforts and also developed prominent campaigns supporting original content, multicultural initiatives, major partnerships, corporate responsibility efforts, global causes, and local impact.

Lisa attained her Bachelor of Arts degree from Morris Brown College, Business Intelligence certificate from Emory University and she also holds a Master of Business Administration in Healthcare Management. Lisa is a 2024 graduate of the Atlanta Regional Commission’s Regional Leadership Institute and a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.