OUR TEAM

Jessica Garz’s primary goal is to motivate public institutions – including those belonging to government, philanthropy and civil society – to have policies, practices and cultures that take an active position towards social and racial equity. As the founder and director of RAE Consulting, Jess’s practice is informed by a decade of work as a grantmaker — first with the New Orleans-based artist-focused Transforma Projects and then as a Senior Program Officer in the arts and culture program at the Surdna Foundation – and influenced by an amazing set of colleagues, peers and friends across the country. Over the years, together with others, including many artists, community organizers and funders Jess has designed and built new organizations and initiatives, including the New York City Neighborhoods First Fund, the Greater New Orleans Funders Network, the Amplify Fund at the Neighborhood Funders group, SOURCE Studios, and she has refined the strategies and operations of existing organizations both as in-house staff and as an external advisor.

Recognizing that social justice organizations must embody their values to realize truly equitable outcomes, Jess leads and facilitates processes such that group culture is built and nurtured alongside the development of strategy and policy. She draws expertise from the diverse roles she’s played over the years in private spaces like board rooms, classrooms and yoga studios, and in the public realm of community meetings, conference stages and editorial pages.

Jess holds a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture from Washington University in St. Louis, a Master’s of City and Regional Planning from MIT with a concentration in Housing, Community and Economic Development, is a certified yoga instructor and teaches in the graduate program at Moore College of Art and Design. After decades of moving around the country, Jess now lives in the neighborhood where she was raised in Philadelphia.