Janet Jensen

Janet Jensen is the Founder and CEO of The Jensen Project where she leverages her strengths in business, innovation, and creativity to cultivate opportunities for individuals and organizations dedicated to empowering survivors of sexual violence and reducing exploitation. 

The organization’s mission was born from a dedication to social enterprises that have always been part of her DNA. As a believer in prevention and a passionate supporter of education, Janet made the commitment long ago to mentor youth and provide a safe space for teens to develop healthy relationships and explore peer-to-peer leadership. She further demonstrated this commitment in 1987 when she launched the Human Investments Foundation to provide youth and young adults a platform for inspiration, leadership, self-empowerment, and the development of core values. Through this initiative, she has distributed more than $5 million in scholarships to over 300 students seeking higher education and vocational training. The second component of the Foundation’s mission was focused on assisting survivors. 

Throughout her career, Janet has taken an active role against sexual and domestic violence at the local and national levels, pioneering systemic changes that have paved the way for critical victim supports.

After witnessing firsthand the impact of an ill-equipped and under-resourced system, she was determined to catalyze growth in community awareness, training, and policy. She collaborated on the production of the very first documentary about sexual assault to debut on prime-time television where she bravely interviewed imprisoned sex offenders. 

She advocated for critical changes in healthcare which eventually led to the establishment of the first public hospital trained to receive and treat victims of sexual assault in Texas. She served on the Board and Advisory Board for numerous organizations dedicated to social change and self-empowerment. She became a frequent speaker on college and university campuses across the country, sharing her personal story of trauma and resilience and promoting an environment of compassion, empathy, and support for survivors. 

In 2016, she sponsored the Stand Up, Speak Up video contest for students at the University of New Haven, designed to raise awareness about sexual misconduct on college campuses and empower students to take an active role in changing culture. Janet’s brave commitment to changing lives led the university to bestow on her an honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters. She went on to become certified in Trust-Based Relational Intervention as well as ELDOA/MFS (Level 3) practice and instruction. 

Most notably, she underwent training at the rape crisis center in Fort Worth to become a survivor advocate and has continually volunteered her time over the last 40 years to counsel, support, and empower survivors of sexual assault. 

Janet is now proud to serve as an active member of the Texas Association Against Sexual Assault, where she collaborates with other individuals to support survivors of sexual assault, bring perpetrators to justice, advocate for policy changes, and develop creative solutions to advance the rights of victims nationwide. Her devotion to establishing victim-centered legislation eventually led her to Washington D.C. where she combined her voice with other survivor leaders and allies in the fight to establish The Equality Model, a survivor-informed and policy-based approach to combatting and criminalizing the demand driving sexual exploitation.

While she holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a Series 7 license from FINRA, Janet is an entrepreneur at heart and has launched multiple businesses, foundations, and social initiatives during her career, charting a course that inevitably led her to a centrally focused mission in 2016. 

Designed to fuel the end of sexual violence through strategic partnerships, The Jensen Project focuses on identifying best practices and leveraging existing resources to build capacity and create solutions for the advancement of individuals exiting the commercial sex industry. Together, they collaborate with national leaders in government and non-governmental arenas to address the root causes of vulnerability, mobilize survivors, and close the gaps that marginalize victims of sexual violence. 

Not only does Janet believe in the strength of the human spirit and the transformational power of second chances, she believes every survivor should feel seen, heard, respected, and inspired to become their own hero. She also believes everyone has something to offer the world and a role to play in changing it for the better. By combining her passions for victim advocacy, violence prevention, and economic empowerment with decades of experience in the public and private sectors, Janet strategically aligns The Jensen Project’s stakeholders with the best avenues for sustainable investments, creating impactful partnerships that build a better future for vulnerable and traumatized individuals. 

As a survivor and overcomer, it is her joy and honor to join with others in the fight against human trafficking and all forms of sexual violence.