VP of Grantmaking and Strategy

The newly created role of Vice President of Grantmaking and Strategy is a foundational partner in Dogwood Health Trust’s (Dogwood) long-term work. Crucial to the organization’s strategic framework, the Vice President will blend on-the-ground knowledge with deep internal and external collaboration. The VP will work closely with the Senior Vice President of Community Investment and partner with members of Dogwood’s Community Investment (CI) team to bring together policy leaders, regional and national funders, and other community and place-based leaders to facilitate long-term program initiatives.

Working closely with the Senior Vice President of Community Investment and other leaders, the Vice President of Grantmaking and Strategy will be adept at analyzing the WNC landscape to discern and design strategic investments to advance Dogwood’s mission. Through creative and responsive program design, and in relationship with grants partners, the VP will ensure that Dogwood is known as a leader in improving the health and well-being of all people in Western North Carolina. While the majority of Dogwood’s funding partnerships have historically deployed via annual grants, the VP will use knowledge and relationships from the field to design and implement initiatives, specifically multi-year investments.

To read the full leadership brief, please visit here. 

Responsibilities

The VP of Grantmaking and Strategy is responsible for the collaborative inception, deployment, and successful management of grants and community investments that continue to integrate Dogwood’s strategic priorities of Health and Wellness, Education, Economic Opportunity, and Housing. The VP of Grantmaking and Strategy will support the Senior Vice President of Community Investment in continuing to develop regional and national philanthropic relationships and will supervise and mentor a team of generalist program and strategy officers and associates.

The Vice President of Grantmaking and Strategy will facilitate the integration of grants with policy and impact investing, partnering with Community Investment leadership and external stakeholders to advance Dogwood’s mission. The Vice President of Grantmaking and Strategy will have deep experience creating multi-year initiatives including program conceptualization, initiative design, external relationships, and team development. The Vice President of Grantmaking and Strategy will have strong working knowledge of both Program-Related Investments (PRIs) and Mission-Related Investments (MRIs).

Qualifications

The VP of Grantmaking and Strategy will bring a deep understanding of the rural and diverse communities with which Dogwood Health Trust works. On-the-ground programmatic work within disinvested and disconnected communities and success building trust and advancing community-informed/driven work are required.

The VP of Grantmaking and Strategy will have experience deploying multi-year general operating support and capacity building investments to strengthen organizations, increase organizational effectiveness, and deepen community impact.

The VP of Grantmaking and Strategy will have at least 10 years of progressive experience developing, leading, and stewarding multi-year, strategic grants implementation in a large philanthropic organization. The VP’s experience will demonstrate cross-collaboration with community, funders, and program teams.

The successful VP candidate will have demonstrated experience working with other philanthropic, funding, and policy-making organizations to support and sustain an initiative.

The VP of Grantmaking and Strategy will have served in a leadership role with direct reports for at least 5 years and will have substantial examples of positively developing and leading a team.

A bachelor’s degree is required; a graduate degree in a relevant field is preferred.

Application Process

To apply, please send a cover letter and resume to DogwoodVP@IntentionalWorks.com

Due to the place-based nature of Dogwood’s work, all staff live in Dogwood’s service footprint comprised of 18 counties and the Qualla Boundary.

Date Posted

04/01/2025

About the Organization

Headquartered in Asheville, North Carolina, Dogwood Health Trust became operational from the sale of Mission Hospital in 2019. Serving 18 counties and the Qualla Boundary of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, Dogwood has approximately $1.8 billion in assets to deploy across the region. Dogwood’s responsibility is to equitably steward these resources and to catalyze leaders and problem solvers to improve the lives of all Western North Carolinians.
Dogwood’s areas of investment aim to lift historically disinvested and disconnected communities in Western North Carolina. With a holistic lens and understanding that one challenge cannot be addressed in silo, Dogwood’s priorities are Education, Economic Opportunities, Housing, and Behavioral Health.

While Dogwood Health Trust is headquartered in Asheville, NC, the VP may live in any of the 18 counties or the Qualla Boundary. Due to the place-based nature of Dogwood’s work, all staff live in Dogwood’s service footprint.

The Dogwood team works in a hybrid style, convening in the newly renovated offices several times a week.

Contact

Laura Lovelace <DogwoodVP@IntentionalWorks.com>