Jocelyn Jones Arnold holds a deep and unique expertise in the philanthropic, nonprofit, and local government sectors. Throughout her three decades of professional experience, Jocelyn served as program staff at the Philadelphia Foundation, Trustee and Board Chair of the Valentine Foundation, Assistant Director of Pembroke Philanthropy Advisors, the first Development Director of Mural Arts Philadelphia, and Deputy Director for the City of Philadelphia’s Office of Recovery & Grants. In this role, Jocelyn has facilitated broad and diverse collaborations among City agencies and community partners that led to the City obtaining more than $150 million in public & private investments, grant awards, and federal designations. These include the first of President Obama’s 10-year Promise Zone designations for West Philadelphia, management of a three-year federal grant, and partnership between the Philadelphia Police Department, the School District of Philadelphia, and local criminal justice partners which led to an unprecedented 71% decrease in the Philadelphia’s school-to-prison pipeline, and a $22M grant from FEMA that enabled the Philadelphia Fire Department to hire 168 new
firefighter positions.
Jocelyn is a skilled communicator and cross-sector connector whose areas of expertise include: Racial equity, social & economic justice, development & fundraising, grantmaking & philanthropy, community empowerment, arts & culture, criminal & Juvenile justice reform, women and girls (gender oppressed, LGBTQ & trans), civic
engagement, and multi-sector partnerships. Jocelyn is also an historian and genealogist who loves nothing more than digging through her family archives to uncover stories of their bravery, struggles, and triumphs. Her passion was sparked by the recent discovery of her 4th great-grandfather, Jerthro Jones (1733 – 1828) a free African-American master toolmaker who served six years of honorable service in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. Her research into her ancestry gives her an unending sense of strength and pride and her fascination with their perseverance fuels her desire to share untold stories of Black Americans and Indigenous peoples with the world.
Jocelyn is a trustee of the Gender Justice Fund, a board member of the Philadelphia Histories Collaborative, and member of the Daughters of the American Revolution’s (DAR’s), Flag House Chapter at Betsy Ross House and Col. Timothy Bigelow Chapter in Worcester, MA.