Senior Program Officer, Arts and Culture

The Fred and Barbara Erb Family Foundation invite nominations and applications for the position of Senior Program Officer to lead strategy and management for their Arts and Culture grantmaking portfolio.

The Fred and Barbara Erb Family Foundation has made more than $180 million in grants to improve the quality of life for residents in Southeast Michigan and the Great Lakes region since launching its grantmaking in 2008. Funding has been focused on improving water quality in the Great Lakes basin; promoting environmental health and justice; advancing Alzheimer’s research; strengthening sustainable business; and supporting arts and culture and jazz education.

In May 2022, the Erb Family Foundation announced its plans to shift from a perpetual foundation to a spenddown model and conclude its grantmaking by 2034-2035. That work will be guided by the Foundation’s new mission and vision:

The Fred and Barbara Erb Family Foundation envisions a flourishing, healthy, and resilient Great Lakes ecosystem and a culturally vibrant, sustainable southeast Michigan. Toward this end, we strengthen the cultural and environmental organizations that share our vision to make this a reality for generations to come.

The Foundation’s grantmaking and way of working will also be guided by its values, which are: to make a lasting transformative difference; embrace possibility; work and learn in partnership; and pursue fairness and respect.

The grantmaking priorities for the Foundation’s spenddown were announced in October 2024 and include six areas of focus: Great Lakes, Arts and Culture, Alzheimer’s Research, Sustainable Business, Democracy, and Legacy Giving. In addition to its grantmaking, the Foundation will work closely with grant partners to learn how to better invest in their organizational health and long-term durability. Across all its activities, the Foundation’s goal is to inspire a new generation of leaders and philanthropic partners to carry on Fred and Barbara’s passions long after the Foundation is gone.

THE OPPORTUNITY

The Senior Program Officer is a new role that will help the Foundation fulfill its long-standing commitment to strengthening metro Detroit’s arts and cultural organizations in honor of Fred and Barbara Erb’s legacy and supporting jazz education in honor of Fred Erb’s lifelong passion for jazz.

The Senior Program Officer will advise and report to the Vice President of Programs. They will lead and collaborate with the Foundation’s growing Arts and Culture team to build out the arts grantmaking strategy and implement the Foundation’s final ten years of grantmaking.

The arts strategy will focus on strengthening the resiliency and development of arts and culture organizations, leaders and the sector in Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb counties and on strengthening Detroit’s jazz culture and mentorship traditions. It will also reflect the Foundation’s overall goals for its spenddown, which are to strengthen the organizational health of nonprofits and support the idea of “making people care”—so that its grant partners can outlast the Foundation and continue work that reflects Fred and Barbara Erb’s interests.

The Senior Program Officer will work closely with the Foundation’s leadership team, trustees, prospective and current grant partners, funder colleagues, government partners, and others. The ideal candidate will be a servant leader, strategic thinker, mentor, connector, and bridge builder and bring curiosity, humility, compassion, and a desire for continuous learning.

CORE DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

• Apply substantive knowledge and experience of the nonprofit arts sector to lead the Foundation’s arts and culture program:
  • Contribute to the hiring, supervision, coaching, mentoring, and professional development of arts team members.
  • Use substantive knowledge and experience of the nonprofit arts and culture sector to develop and execute grantmaking strategy in coordination with arts team, Foundation leadership, and Trustees.
  • Partner with organizations to develop program grant and capacity building proposals, budgets, and presentations that convey project details; conduct thorough due diligence. Ensure that these activities are carried out with fidelity across the arts program team.
  • Assess impact of grants and collaborate with Foundation colleagues to surface lessons learned and incorporate those findings in ongoing decision making and share them with the field when appropriate.
  • Coordinate learning opportunities, convenings, and networking opportunities for peers in philanthropy, grant partners, and others.
  • Work in close consultation with the Foundation’s leadership team and trustees and with support from other Foundation team members responsible for grants management, communications, and learning and evaluation.
• Actively participate in learning about arts organizations and community needs, vision, and goals and share out that information regularly—in writing, meetings, presentations, and site visits—with the arts team and Foundation leadership.
• Develop and maintain ongoing relationships with prospective and current grant partners; offer thought partnership, feedback, introductions, and other resources to support the organizational strength of grant partners that extends beyond grantmaking.
• Stay up to date on current and emerging arts and culture issues by attending stakeholder meetings and conducting research as needed.
• Cultivate knowledge of trends in philanthropy and the nonprofit sector and share that knowledge to improve the Foundation’s work and strengthen the work of prospective and current grant partners.
• Represent the Foundation at meetings, convenings, conferences, and other events.
• Cultivate knowledge of trends in philanthropy and the nonprofit sector and share that knowledge to improve the Foundation’s work and strengthen the work of prospective and current grant partners.
• Develop and grow relationships with local, regional, and national funder colleagues and policy makers.
• Proactively support and contribute to external communications to create content and knowledge sharing activities that amplify grant partners’ missions, projects, and achievements.

QUALIFICATIONS & SKILLS

• Passionate and knowledgeable about the nonprofit arts sector—especially financial management, governance, audience development, fundraising, program management and evaluation, communications, organizational culture, and other areas that contribute to institutional health.
• Experience and understanding of the arts and culture sector in Southeast Michigan.
• Understand the roles and intersections of philanthropy, government, communities, and other organizations and systems impacting the arts—and maintain strong networks within and across them.
• Demonstrated capacity to think strategically and define, refine, and execute grantmaking strategies.
• Demonstrated ability to lead highly collaborative teams and mentor staff.
• Demonstrated experience in building strong, positive, collaborative relationships—internally and externally—by being an active listener, maintaining openness to new ideas and perspectives, and encouraging dialogue.
• Experience working with individuals and communities who represent a diverse range of identities and lived experience.
• The ability to be resilient in the face of challenges, rebound from disappointment, manage conflict, and maintain a growth mindset.
• Ability to analyze grant opportunities in the context of complex organizational and community conditions—including historical, emerging and possible future needs and challenges.
• Intellectual curiosity and an aptitude for conceptual and analytical thinking, including strong problem solving and financial analysis skills—balanced by the capacity for self-reflection and socio-emotional intelligence.
• Willingness to contribute to the Foundation’s culture of communication and curiosity and participate in its efforts to cultivate inclusion and belonging in all its relationships.
• Ability to maintain the highest levels of integrity, ethics, discernment, diplomacy, and strict confidentiality.
• A collegial spirit in sharing and receiving ideas, information, and feedback.
• Strong project management and exceptional verbal communication and writing skills, and attention to detail.
• Curiosity about the Foundation’s interests in the Great Lakes, environmental justice, climate resiliency, sustainable business, and/or democracy.
• Proficient with Microsoft 365 including Teams, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, etc. and online grants management systems.

Education & Experience

The Senior Program Officer will bring an advanced degree related to the Foundation’s interests in the arts and culture. They will have ten or more years of experience with issues impacting the nonprofit arts and culture sector, including five or more years in a leadership role at a nonprofit, philanthropic, or governmental organization. Candidates with an alternative but comparable level of experience are encouraged to apply.

WORK ARRANGEMENTS, COMPENSATION & BENEFITS

This is a full-time hybrid position, and the Foundation’s offices are located in Birmingham, Michigan. Attendance at grant partners’ evening and weekend events and occasional travel should be anticipated.

While performing the duties of the job, the Senior Program Officer is regularly required to communicate effectively with internal and external partners. They will be frequently required to sit and to use their hands to handle or feel. They may occasionally need to stoop, kneel, or crouch, and to lift and/or move up to 50 lbs.

In the normal course of work, employees operate a laptop, iPad, telephone, cellular telephone, web conferencing equipment, and copier/printer. This position requires the employee to make decisions in a timely manner and anticipate all the potential ramifications of decisions made. The employee must be able to read and interpret documents, understand/follow complex written and oral instructions, be able to express themselves clearly/concisely, perform mathematical functions, and handle multiple, concurrent tasks.

The salary for this position begins at $140,000 and may be adjusted according to qualifications and experience. The Foundation offers a comprehensive benefits package including employer-paid health, dental, and vision insurance and a generous 401K plan.

This is a full-time hybrid position, and the Foundation’s offices are located in Birmingham, Michigan. Attendance at grant partners’ evening and weekend events and occasional travel should be anticipated.

While performing the duties of the job, the Senior Program Officer is regularly required to communicate effectively with internal and external partners. They will be frequently required to sit and to use their hands to handle or feel. They may occasionally need to stoop, kneel, or crouch, and to lift and/or move up to 50 lbs.

In the normal course of work, employees operate a laptop, iPad, telephone, cellular telephone, web conferencing equipment, and copier/printer. This position requires the employee to make decisions in a timely manner and anticipate all the potential ramifications of decisions made. The employee must be able to read and interpret documents, understand/follow complex written and oral instructions, be able to express themselves clearly/concisely, perform mathematical functions, and handle multiple, concurrent tasks.

The salary for this position begins at $140,000 and may be adjusted according to qualifications and experience. The Foundation offers a comprehensive benefits package including employer-paid health, dental, and vision insurance and a generous 401K plan.