As the provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of North Carolina (UNC) Asheville, Jane K. Fernandes led a noteworthy career in the realm of academic leadership. At UNC, she oversaw 40 academic majors, along with 30 concentrations relating to them. In addition to this, she handled all faculty hiring and development, institutional technology services, institutional research, and the academic affairs budget. Jane K. Fernandes was also the first female president at Guilford College in North Carolina and the first deaf female to lead a university or college in the United States. She served as a Vice President at Gallaudet University, a school with a predominantly deaf student body, before being elevated to Provost.

In addition to her involvement in academia, Ms. Fernandes is active in her local community. She served on the board of the Center for Diversity Education at UNC Asheville. She has taken on positions such as advisory board member for the American Sign Language Program at the University of Iowa, advisory board member of the Women’s Leadership Training Institute at Gallaudet University, and board member of the Martin Luther King Jr. Association of Asheville and Buncombe County.
Ms. Fernandes administered the Association's scholarship for deserving high school students going on to postsecondary education.