Francela Chi de Chinchilla

Francela Chi de Chinchilla serves as Vice President and Chief Advancement Officer at the Forum where she is focused on communicating the impact of the Forum’s strategy and cultivating donor relationships to build long-term sustainability for the organization. She is an expert in coalition building, partnership strategy and issue campaigns for a wide range of causes including DACA, women’s health equity and environmental justice.

Previously, Francela was Vice President of Partnerships for Equis, an organization dedicated to understanding the Latinx electorate by investing in data, digital innovation and convening power. Before Equis, she served her nonprofit clients as a Principal at The Raben Group with strategic planning and execution of high-level decision making for long-term campaigns. She served as the lead Washington representative for large membership organizations and foundations by representing them on Capitol Hill, with the White House, and among peer organizations.

While at the Raben Group, Francela concurrently served as the Vice President of Advocacy and Partnerships on the creation of a Smithsonian American Latino Museum on the National Mall in Washington, DC. Culminating in the passage of the Smithsonian American Latino Museum Act in 2020.

Born in Costa Rica, Francela’s lived experience as a Dreamer is a driver and source of motivation for ensuring dignity and justice for immigrants today. As the board chair of the award-winning organization, the Esperanza Education Fund, she personally led the organization to grant $1 million in scholarships for immigrant students in the DC area. She is a graduate of Georgetown University and the University of Southern California, and she lives in Los Angeles with her husband and three gorgeous kiddos.