Jess Ernst

About Jess Ernst

Title: Grants and Funds Development Manager

Year started at JPNDC: 2026

Major areas of responsibility: I work to raise contributed revenue from a variety of sources to support JPNDC’s programs and services. Through private grants, city/state/federal grants, corporate sponsorship, and individual giving, JPNDC is fortunate to be supported by our community. These funds are crucial to helping JPNDC offer many of our services to community members free of charge.

Relevant background: I come to JPNDC from the arts world, with over 15 years of experience working in the nonprofit theater sector as an artist, administrator, and fundraiser. I hold a BA in English and Theatre Arts from Gettysburg College and an MS in Arts Administration, with a Graduate Certificate in Fundraising Management, from BU. Most recently, I served as Director of Development at The Theater Offensive. TTO creates liberating art by, for, and about queer and trans people of color, and all of TTO’s work is deeply rooted in community organizing and the role of theater as a tool to fight for liberation. I live just down the road in Roslindale and am excited to work alongside the whole JPNDC team to continue building a vibrant, equitable, and sustainable community.

  • What inspires me: The endless creative spirit of humanity – how we are constantly finding new ways to imagine and enact new ways of being in the world. I believe that our drive to make art and our drive to organize our communities for change come from the same deep-down desire to collaboratively envision and create a better world. Witnessing this drive in action and being a part, in any way, of that work, is what energizes and inspires me most.
  • What I like: Reading, yoga, gardening, cooking, riding my bike, Dungeons and Dragons, seeing and developing new plays, cats, and finding new ways to connect with my community.