Jiquanda Nelson serves as Board President of the Coalition for Healthy Communities, bringing more than 20 years of leadership, community engagement, and workforce development experience. A product of the Zion-Benton community, her service with the Coalition is deeply personal. After building her career and living outside the area, Jiquanda returned home with a desire to reconnect, give back, and invest in the community that helped shape her.
Jiquanda believes strong communities are built when people come together, listen to one another, create opportunities for young people and families, and turn shared commitment into action. That same belief has shaped her professional work, including leadership roles with Kaiser Permanente, Concentrix, Walgreens, and Abbott, and today as CEO of People Decoders, where she helps organizations strengthen leadership, culture, and create environments where people can thrive. Her leadership and community impact have also earned her recognitions such as a 40 Under 40 honoree by the Puget Sound Business Journal and being named one of the Top 10 Influential D&I Leaders to Follow in 2023 by CIO Views Magazine.
Jiquanda’s connection to CHC began as a member of the inaugural class of the Zion-Benton Leadership Academy (ZBLA). She later returned to pour into the program that invested in her, serving as curriculum chair, co-chair, and eventually as a mentor, a role she continues today. Now, as Board President, Jiquanda is focused on strengthening the Coalition, supporting its Task Forces and volunteers, and expanding community partnerships and engagement. For her, being back home makes this work especially meaningful: an opportunity to give back to the community she loves and help advance CHC’s vision of “a community without barriers.”
