Arts Council of Greater Lansing

As Executive Director of the Arts Council of Greater Lansing, Leslie cultivated strategic partnerships to deliver programs and services to 140 arts and cultural agencies and 200 artists in three counties. She oversaw the administration of government funded grant programs and established three new endowment-funded programs, including the Chris Clark Fellowship Program for Creative Professionals. Her most significant accomplishment included the creation and implementation of Michigan's first-ever regional cultural economic development plan, ArtWorks: A Collaborative Cultural Economic Development Plan for Greater Lansing. She also spearheaded capacity-building programs for artists, including the SmArts Program, and led numerous arts advocacy and marketing efforts including the establishment of the Art in the Sky Billboard Program, the Greater Lansing Festival Alliance, the Creative Toolkit, and the Alliance of Creative Students.