Jessica Hughes Ford
Chief Communications Officer, Arkansas Community Foundation
Jessica Ford is the chief communications officer at Arkansas Community Foundation, where she oversees all communications, media relations and marketing. Starting her career as an advocate for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault, Ford has worked in the nonprofit sector for 17 years. Prior to the Community Foundation, she spent 12 years at Heifer International and is an alumna of the Thunderbird School of Global Management’s “Emerging Leaders in the Social Sector” program. When COVID hit Arkansas, Gov. Asa Hutchinson endorsed the Foundation as the best place to donate for pandemic relief. Ford and the Foundation team immediately leapt into action, and in four months raised more than $3.8 million for granting to 837 nonprofits statewide. A native of Redfield, Arkansas, Ford has a bachelor’s degree in women’s studies from the University of Wyoming and is a recent graduate of Leadership Greater Little Rock.
