Leslie is the Vice President of Development for Student Veterans of America (SVA), where she utilizes her extensive experience in fundraising and philanthropy to support student veteran success. Prior to joining SVA, Leslie served as the Senior Philanthropic Advisor for the Southwest Florida Community Foundation, Collaboratory.

Leslie previously served as Assistant Dean for Development for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Education. During her tenure, she oversaw fundraising, alumni engagement, marketing, and communications, resulting in significant growth in annual fundraising results, funding for a major building renovation project, and increased support for scholarships, faculty research, and programs. In recognition of her promotion of lifelong learning and continuous improvement amongst her staff, Leslie was awarded UNC’s Outstanding Encouragement of Learning and Development award in 2020.

Leslie’s passion for philanthropy started early in her career, and she has held leadership roles in fundraising at the University of Arizona Eller College of Business and Florida State University College of Music. She began her development career at Florida State University College of Arts and Sciences. While on the development team at FSU, Leslie worked closely with the Student Veterans Center and SVA at FSU chapter to raise funds in support of student veteran initiatives across campus.

Leslie holds an MBA and dual bachelor’s degrees in marketing and merchandising and product development from Florida State University. She resides in Southwest Florida and enjoys travel, kayaking, and college football, particularly cheering on the Noles on game day Saturdays.