Linda Akutagawa

leap President & CEO

Linda Akutagawa (she/hers) is President and CEO of LEAP (Leadership Education for Asian Pacifics), an organization she has led for the last 10 years. She is committed to developing Asian and Pacific Islanders leaders, and from the classroom to the boardroom, she actively advocates for inclusive pathways for diverse leaders.

 Ms. Akutagawa is a Commissioner on the 2020 California Citizens Redistricting Commission and an appointed member of the California Department of Insurance Diversity Task Force. She is also the Immediate Past Chair of the Alliance for Board Diversity, a Board Member of the Asian Pacific Planning and Policy Council (a co-founding organization of #StopAAPIHate), a member of the Asian/Asian American Institute Advisory Board at California State University at Los Angeles (CSULA) and a Board member of Japanese American Community Services (JACS).

She is a nationally recognized speaker and facilitator on leadership, diversity, equity, and inclusion, nonprofits, and board governance. Ms. Akutagawa received her B.S. in International Business with a minor in Economics from California State University at Los Angeles. She has a Certificate in Nonprofit Board Consulting through Boardsource. She is married and a fur-mom to two spoiled rescue dogs and aunty to eleven nephews and nieces.