JumpStart Inc. has hired Kimalon Dixon to fill its newly created Chief of Staff role. Dixon will be responsible for the strategic alignment of operations, programming and external partnerships to increase the organization’s ability to power initiatives driving economic development, entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem building across Northern Ohio.

Dixon recently served as the Senior Project Director of CLE Purpose Built Communities, a partnership between the Cleveland Foundation and St. Luke’s Foundation. In this role, she led a community revitalization initiative, working at the neighborhood and systems level to transform education, housing and community health. Prior to this role, Dixon served as a program officer at the Cleveland Foundation and held various leadership positions at the City of Cleveland’s Department of Public Health.

“The Chief of Staff is a critical role within JumpStart, leading day-to-day operations and maximizing organizational efficiencies to help us advance our mission,” said JumpStart CEO Ray Leach. “Kimalon is deeply invested in helping communities achieve their highest potential through collaboration and systems-level change. We are thrilled to have her on board.”

Dixon earned her Bachelor of Science in Microbiology from The Ohio State University and a Master of Business Administration with a concentration in Management & Labor Relations from Cleveland State University. She has been recognized by local, state and national organizations for her public health and philanthropy accomplishments. She serves on the Board of Trustees of P.A.L.S. For Healing and the HealthComp Foundation. She is also an alumnus of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Culture of Health Leaders Program.

“JumpStart is an esteemed organization with a highly-talented team of innovators and visionaries,” said Dixon. “I’m delighted to begin my next chapter with a team that is committed to building equitable innovation ecosystems and energizing the vitalization of our regional community.”

Dixon is a Cleveland native. She enjoys creative writing, gardening, and traveling in her free time and recently launched a lifestyle blog – grownwomanish.com – to inspire and motivate black women who are forty-plus amazing. She believes there are life’s joys and an unexpected youth in your middle years and beyond.

About JumpStart Inc.
JumpStart is a nationally recognized investing, entrepreneurial support and economic development organization dedicated to unlocking entrepreneurship to transform entire communities.