Senior Program Officer, Equity and Social Justice Partnerships
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF; the Foundation), located in Princeton, N.J., is the largest philanthropy in America dedicated solely to health. Since 1972, we have focused on developing and promoting innovations in health and healthcare to improve the lives of millions. In partnership with others, we are working toward a nation that is rooted in equity, compassion, and respect. A nation that provides everyone in America a fair and just opportunity to thrive, no matter who they are, where they live, or how much money they have. This requires addressing many harmful obstacles to wellbeing, including poverty, powerlessness, and discrimination.
We take seriously our responsibilities, and we pledge to work in ways that reflect our Guiding Principles. These are rooted in equity and influence everything we do at RWJF. Equity, diversity, inclusion, and collaboration allow our staff's wide range of experiences, passions, and perspectives to enrich our work and strengthen our ability to address our nation's most pressing health issues. The Foundation offers a collaborative, collegial, and creative work environment. With a career at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, you will make a difference.
About This Opportunity
Reporting to the vice president, Equity and Culture, the senior program officer (SPO), equity and social justice partnerships, will incubate, build out, and manage strategic, executive level relationships with social justice organizations; manage grants and field support to build power to historically marginalized communities with a cross-issue, intersectional, and historically grounded lens; while rooting the program and catalyzing learning and transformation within the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the larger philanthropic sector.
The SPO will be responsible for managing three related areas of work:
- The Equity and Social Justice Relationships (ESJR) strategy aims to amplify the power and influence of a cohort of grantees focused on movement building and community power building to promote equity and social justice nationwide, including countering the impact of structural racism on health. The ESJR strategy facilitates access to Executive level decision-makers in the Foundation; seeks to move the collective vision and agenda of a cohort of ESJR-focused leaders to dismantle the impact of structural racism and other systems of oppression on health and advance a Culture of Health; while catalyzing learning and transformation within RWJF and the larger philanthropic sector.
- The Presidents' Council on Disability Inclusion in Philanthropy coordinates philanthropic leadership in order to dismantle structural ableism and move toward equity; provides seed funding through a participatory Disability Inclusion Fund (DIF); and catalyzes shared learning through the Disability and Philanthropy Forum (Forum). RWJF currently co-chairs the Presidents' Council, supports both the DIF and Forum, and is committed to leveraging its participation to deepen the Foundation's own disability journey, including but not limited to advancing a disability inclusion and justice lens in its grantmaking and investments.
- Deepening (potential) grantee relationships through a small eight to 10 million dollar discretionary budget related to the above program areas, with a focus on amplifying organizations and networks that build power to communities most harmed by health inequities; building the ecosystem to advance intersectional racial justice; and reckoning with and repairing historical harm, including medical harm, with the additional goal of shifting understanding and practice within RWJF and philanthropy.
The SPO position is part of a new Equity and Culture department focused on shifting RWJF's internal and external institutional practices to advance health equity from the inside out. While this position is not situated within the RWJF Program Unit, the SPO will collaborate with program staff, manage external-facing programs in the areas described above, and create a through line from these programs to shift how RWJF understands and invests in communities.
As with staff at all levels of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the SPO, Equity and Culture is expected to demonstrate a passionate commitment to equity, and to the Foundation's mission and Guiding Principles.
While the SPO can be primarily based at one of the Foundation's three offices (our headquarters in Princeton N.J., New York City, or Washington, D.C.) this is not a remote position. The SPO will be required to visit the Princeton office as defined by the Foundation's return to work policies still to be determined.
Essential Job Responsibilities
Program Strategy Development and Implementation
- Manage and lead the implementation of the program areas above, with a focus on incubating and embedding the strategy within RWJF and beyond, through strategic planning, learning, communications, and collaboration within and beyond RWJF.
- Build and deepen transformative relationships with a cohort of grantees, to advance a social justice-focused community of learning and practice related to cross-issue intersectional organizing and power building. This includes working with consultants to design and implement cohort-building activities.
- Work collaboratively with the Equity and Culture department and relevant philanthropies on the strategic development and operations of the Presidents' Council on Disability Inclusion in Philanthropy, the Disability Inclusion Fund (DIF) housed at Borealis Philanthropy, and the Disability and Philanthropy Forum ("the Forum"). This includes managing the relationship with the DIF, guiding the Forum during its transition into becoming a Philanthropy Serving Organization, and reporting on meeting RWJF's commitments related the Presidents' Council.
- Partner with the vice president, Equity and Culture and other positions within the Equity and Culture department to identify strategic objectives and develop and implement action plans for these programs in ways that advance the Foundation's equity, diversity and inclusion vision and change management process.
- Develop indicators to monitor the progress of these strategies.
- Stay abreast of new developments and trends in the social justice field in order to ensure that RWJF's resources are directed appropriately toward the highest level of impact. This includes participating in conferences and other professional development activities to maintain and enhance analysis and expertise in equity and social justice approaches to grantmaking.
Grantmaking Processes
- Work with internal staff, consultants, other philanthropies and external organizations to plan, develop and respond through an equity and social justice lens to requests for funding, including screening and assessing prospective project proposals, and working with applicants to refine plans and project budgets.
- Understand, implement and follow grant-making processes and policies of RWJF while integrating and influencing a strategic shift towards equity and social justice in philanthropic practices. This includes preparing oral and written summaries of grantee programs, determining appropriate types of support, managing grant evaluations, monitoring the use of grant funds, and conducting site visits.
Organizational Engagement, Learning and Change
- Drive the continued evolution of the Foundation's practices and infrastructure, especially programmatically, to advance equity and social justice. This includes collaborating in grantmaking with colleagues across RWJF; working with staff, consultants, and practitioners to harvest and disseminate learning related to cross-issue, intersectional, and historically grounded lenses such as disability justice, reproductive justice and healing justice; and leading and participating in work groups across the Foundation and philanthropy to embed intersectional racial, gender, disability, and social justice goals across RWJF's grantmaking and program strategies.
- Be a key contributor to a growing Equity and Culture department, as well as to internal Foundation groups and teams. This includes collaborating with administrative management to mentor and supervise administrative staff with whom they work; participating in Foundation-wide projects related to interest and program areas; and performing other projects and responsibilities as assigned.
External Relations and Field Building
- Develop relationships with peer philanthropies and organizations working in relevant social justice fields, including engaging in the creative use of convenings, co-funding, and other tools and partnerships to promote shared and complementary grantmaking agendas and to advance learning in the philanthropic sector.
- Represent and Foundation publicly, and communicate and share the Foundation's equity and social justice journey authentically and transparently, to deepen collective learning and accountability for transformation.
Requirements:
- Commitment to racial and health equity and the Foundation's vision, values, and Guiding Principles.
- Minimum of eight (8) years of experience with social justice organizations and philanthropy, in roles that enable shaping and implementing strategy and learning how nonprofits and social justice movements operate; prior experience in philanthropy is required.
- Demonstrated experience building and sustaining relationships with diverse stakeholders in the social justice eco-system, including but not limited to movement leaders, organizers, policy advocates, directly impacted communities, and philanthropies. Ideal candidates will be well-connected to organizers across the country, and understand what new and deepening opportunities exist to lift up and support communities on the ground.
- Deep knowledge and understanding of social justice movement-building, power building strategies, and organizing work.
- Ability to think, work, and continue to learn with an intersectional approach, particularly with regard to race, gender, disability, class, and sexual orientation, with an understanding and appreciation of social justice as an organizational operating principle.
- Ability to work and build trusted relationships across cultural differences and the organizational hierarchy, including influencing when there are no reporting lines; a collaborator and team player; someone who is open, adaptable, and leads with humility.
- Strong analytical and strategic thinking skills and experience, and the ability to synthesize information clearly and concisely in speech and writing.
- Organized, structured, and able to manage and advance projects and structural change with a clear implementation focus, and a flexible, learning-by-doing orientation.
- Ambitious, tenacious, and results-oriented in the face of resistance and adversity.
- Bachelor's degree or equivalent education and experience in a related field.
- Ability to travel; including site visits and representing the Foundation at outside meetings.
- Bachelor's degree or equivalent education and experience in a related field.
Physical Requirements/Working Conditions
The SPO, equity and social justice partnerships performs job duties in a typical business office environment. Specific physical abilities required by this job include operating basic office equipment. They will be required to attend meetings, potentially both on-site and off-site, via phone or videoconference. Some domestic travel may be required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.