Events

In November 2025, Lisa Jansen was appointed  as the Executive Director of Hot August Nights. Lisa has more than 20 years of experience in event management, community engagement, and marketing in the state of Nevada. Prior to Hot August Nights, Lisa was the Director of Special Events and Entertainment at the Nugget Casino Resort, where she managed some of the region’s most recognized events including the Best in the West Nugget Rib Cook-Off, Star Spangled Sparks, and Hot August Nights at the Nugget. Her leadership extended across marketing events, sponsorship development, vendor coordination, and large-scale event logistics. She’s an Honorary Member of the Rotary Club of Reno, a Paul Harris Fellow, and a former board member for 39 North Downtown and the Reno-Sparks Chamber of Commerce. She’s also the co-owner of Ronin Fermentation Project, an award-winning brewery in Graeagle, California. Her work and dedication have earned her a Twenty Under 40 Award and recognition from the Nevada Women’s Fund Women of Achievement.

Through local, state and national programs in prevention, intervention and treatment of mental health and substance use disorders, Judi’s contributions to education, healthcare, workforce development, criminal justice, military and Veterans are many. As a high school principal and school district superintendent, Judi ran directly into barriers to learning, including mental health and substance use disorders. These barriers catalyzed her commitment and determination to find solutions. She was asked to serve as policy advisor to the Governor of Washington State as the State’s Chief Executive on Substance Use Issues, and subsequently, held three positions in our Nation’s Capital. She opened the doors of a national non-profit (funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation) to build community-based coalitions focused on substance use prevention efforts of which there are now over 5000. Judi then stepped into the federal government’s Executive Branch as a White House National Policy Advisor and Asst. Director of the White House national youth-focused substance use prevention media campaign. This was followed by a position as Director of the National Center for the Advancement of Prevention taking research to practice.

Following a decade of state and national service, Judi moved to Silicon Valley where she helped build the world’s first live, online group treatment programs as Senior VP of CRC Health Group. Followed by a jump directly into neural science as Senior VP of the Newport Brain Research Lab in Newport Beach, CA, which led to her current work as Co-Founder of the Brain Health Leadership Foundation whose mission is “promoting brain health through science education and treatment.”

Additionally, Judi contributed as founding facilitator and a National Board Member of All Rise (the National Association of Drug Court Professionals and Justice for Vets).