A change agent, strategist, relationship builder, thought partner,
problem solver and proven and committed leader in public
service, higher education and the nonprofit sector, Dawn Tyler
Lee is the Founder and CEO of Forrest Street Consulting (FSC), a
firm that specializes in helping grow leaders and helping leaders
grow through coaching and training.
Dawn is a certified John Maxwell coach, trainer and speaker who
thrives when she can support people in reaching their full
potential. In addition to developing leaders, FSC provides interim
leadership for organizations in leadership transition and has done
so as an acting Franklin County Commissioner and Interim
Executive Director for Dress For Success and the Charitable
Healthcare Network. Forrest Street also executes and manages special projects and helps to
introduce, acclimate and integrate African American professionals, and their families into the central
Ohio community.
Prior to founding Forrest Street, Dawn served as Deputy Chief of Staff for Columbus, Ohio Mayor
Andrew J. Ginther. There, she was the highest-ranking African-American appointed official and was
responsible for advancing the Mayor’s Equity Agenda. She was also tapped by the Mayor to lead the
city’s first-ever national search for its police chief.
Her transformative work history also includes being Senior Vice President for Community Impact at the United Way of Central Ohio, Founding Executive Director of Partners Achieving Community Transformation (PACT), a community development collaborative, Assistant Vice President for Government Relations and Assistant Vice President for Outreach and Engagement at The Ohio State University, Board
Liaison for Columbus City Schools, Columbus City Council Legislative Aide and Housing Policy
Director for the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio.
Dawn has been featured in Business First, Columbus Monthly Magazine, Columbus Alive! and Who’s
Who in Black Columbus, and has received numerous awards including being named a YWCA
Woman of Achievement. She is a graduate of Harvard Business School Young Americans Leadership
Program and the African American Leadership Academy (AALA). She serves on the AALA Advisory
Board and is a member of the City of Columbus Civil Service Commission. Dawn earned her master’s
degree in urban affairs and public policy from the University of Delaware with a specialization in
housing and community development, is a proud graduate of Hampton University and an active
member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated.
Dawn lives on the east side of Columbus, Ohio, with her entrepreneur husband, Robert E. Lee III, and
their two lovable, but sometimes ornery, dogs Chiqui and Charli, both rescued from Puerto Rico.
