Jesse Leon — Keynote Lecturer on Leadership, Resilience, and Institutional Trust

Commission a Keynote Lecture

Jesse León delivers high-impact keynote lectures that move audiences from insight to action. His expertise in leadership, resilience, and institutional trust helps organizations navigate complexity, manage change, and human-centered decision-making.

Jesse has delivered keynote lectures and institutional addresses for global organizations including the United Nations, TEDx, the Ford Foundation, and the Gates Foundation Discovery Center, as well as thousands of educators, mental health professionals, corporate leaders, and criminal justice officials (including judges) across the U.S. and abroad.

When Systems Fail: What Survivorship Teaches Us About Leadership, Education, and Trust

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Additional Keynote Lectures

  • Uniting for Progress: Bridging Divides to Address Critical Social Issues
  • Bouncing Back: Hope, Resilience, and Reinvention in Behavioral Health
  • Trauma-Informed and Culturally Responsive Practice: What It Looks Like in Action
  • Purpose, Vulnerability, and Courage in Leadership
  • The Seeds We Plant: The Lasting Impact of Educators
  • (All keynote lectures are customizable for universities, foundations, and executive audiences.)

Why Organizations Choose Jesse

Cinematic Storytelling

Grounded in lived experience and institutional leadership, Jesse delivers cinematic storytelling that resonates across entire organizations, from leadership teams to frontline staff.

Actionable Insight

Audiences leave with frameworks, language, and tools they can apply immediately—not just inspiration.

Cross-Sector Impact

Jesse’s work spans education, behavioral health, philanthropy, justice, and executive leadership.

Cross-Sector Impact

Jesse’s work spans education, behavioral health, philanthropy, justice, and executive leadership.

Engagement Pathways

I’m Not Broken™ Keynote Lectures

High-impact keynote experiences for conferences and large institutional audiences.

Executive & Individual Coaching

Coaching engagements that support leaders in strengthening clarity, resilience, focus, and long-term vision.

We’re Not Broken™ Leadership Sessions

Facilitated sessions designed to help organizations build supportive environments and elevate leadership capacity.

We’re Not Broken™ Organizational Workshops

Customized workshops for schools, agencies, foundations, and institutions focused on systems-level alignment.

Integrated Leadership Curriculum

Organizations may opt for the Integrated I’m Not Broken™ + We’re Not Broken™ Leadership Curriculum, which includes:

  • I’m Not Broken™ Executive Coaching Method

  • Mindset & Resilience Models shaped by the We’re Not Broken™ Framework

  • Leadership Activation and Purpose-Driven Development

Jesse León is exclusively represented by AEI Speakers Bureau.

Commission a Keynote Lecture

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Inquire About Custom Packages

What People Are Saying

“Jesse Leon is an author whose message is so raw, moving and authentic, it will move you to
appreciate his resilience even if his experiences are far removed from your own. Prepare to be
lifted out of your comfort zone and inspired by his powerful story of surviving against the odds.”

Pedro Noguera, Dean, Rossier School of Education, University of Southern California

“Jesse Leon is a galvanizing presenter and author. His personable and undeviating approach to
telling the story of his life captivates and stills an audience. However, Jesse's master talent is the
way he stands hopeful for the future, and passes that optimism on to everyone he meets.”

Dr. Towanna Burrous, Institute for Coaching Innovation

“Jesse was fantastic! He delivered a heartfelt and vulnerable presentation that truly touched our
community. He was a pleasure to work with, and he obviously cares deeply about the important
work he does. The responses to Jesse’s talk were overwhelmingly positive, and we are grateful to
have had an opportunity to share in his life journey, even in some small way.”

Crowell & Moring LLP

“Jesse was an amazing speaker! His authenticity and willingness to share his personal story
touched all attendees at our event. He spoke about difficult topics with grace and sensitivity and
helped create awareness and a safe space for talking about challenging issues affecting our
communities. It was an absolute honor to have him join our firm for our celebration of Hispanic
Heritage Month.”

Partner, Gould+Ratner LLP

“Having Jesse on our show was an amazing experience. We’re immensely grateful to him for
sharing his story with us as part of a special segment we did about him, his journey, and his
memoir. We received an excellent response from his segment on our show, Primer Impacto, with
hundreds of favorable comments on our many social media platforms from people praising
Jesse’s ability to deliver his message in a clear and sensitive manner to Univision’s millions of
Hispanic viewers across the U.S.”

Producer, Univisión

“Jesse’s powerful keynote gave voice to the pain so many of our youth are facing today as well
as the hope our members work tirelessly to offer to the youth we serve. Jesse’s warmth and
generosity in sharing his lived experience will long be remembered by our attendees.”

California Alliance for Children and Family Services