Jon Ellison worked for Habitat for Humanity in Miami and the International Foundation for Election Systems in Washington, D.C. before studying law. After graduating from Harvard Law School in 2004, Jon practiced corporate law for several years at Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP in New York City and in Dubai. During this time, Jon represented institutional clients creating and investing in private equity funds, and he also served a fellowship with the Lawyers Alliance for New York, a pro bono organization that provides free corporate legal services to nonprofit groups assisting low-income communities in New York City. He then traveled internationally for a few years, working for United Nations agencies and other international development organizations as a legal consultant with the Columbia Group for Children in Adversity. In 2012 Jon moved to Austin, where he found his current position as in-house counsel for the endowment of the University of Texas System.