Senior Program Coordinator

The Council of Michigan Foundations (CMF) is the fiduciary for the Governor’s Office of Foundation Liaison and handles all fiscal and administrative functions for the office. The staff supporting the office are employed by CMF.

About OFL

Created in 2003 at the suggestion of Michigan philanthropic leaders, the Governor’s Office of Foundation Liaison (OFL) currently operates with the support of Governor Gretchen Whitmer and is located in the governor's administrative offices. The foundation liaison is a cabinet-level position and helps to identify and broker innovative funding partnerships and strategic collaborations between the executive branch of state government and foundations to encourage programs or policy reforms that would improve the lives of all Michigan children, families and residents.

Since its inception, the OFL has brokered investments in initiatives to increase Michigan's economic competitiveness through reforms in early childhood development and education, K-12 education, college and career readiness, health and well-being and workforce development, with an emphasis on equity and safety net issues.

OFL’s work is guided by the belief that we must remove the barriers of access and opportunity for communities with limited resources and for communities of color. And we will only do this by targeting our collective resources, time and attention – and with an emphasis on changing systems so they are more responsive to the needs of families and communities, particularly the most vulnerable.

The Michigan OFL is the first cabinet-level position in the nation designed to help identify and broker innovative funding partnerships and strategic collaborations between the executive branch of state government and foundations.

The creation of this nonpartisan position marked the state's first formal partnership with the foundation community.

Karen Aldridge-Eason, a loaned executive from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, serves as the foundation liaison where she works with the governor, the executive branch of state government, foundations and the nonprofit community to help bring about positive, effective change.

Summary:

The senior program coordinator will work in collaboration with the governor’s foundation liaison, the office’s director of research and planning and the program officer to advance OFL’s work to identify and broker innovative funding partnerships and strategic collaborations between the executive branch of state government and philanthropy to improve outcomes for Michigan residents, especially those that are most vulnerable and marginalized.

The coordinator is responsible for providing excellent customer service with an overall focus on supporting programs and partnerships efficiently and effectively. The coordinator will have a dual reporting structure and report to the foundation liaison and the director of research and planning.

• Assist the office in stewarding relationships with key government departmental staff based on policy issues and foster a regular cadence for funder engagement strategy with the governor’s administration in coordination with the OFL team.
• Research topics and analyze policy recommendations.
• Develop various documents and presentation materials to implement and maintain services and/or programs. Work with OFL team to develop agendas, session designs and briefing materials for virtual and in-person gatherings. Schedule events, manage materials and logistics.
• Communicate and coordinate information between team members, the Council of Michigan Foundations’ staff and program participants.
• Serve as primary support for the foundation liaison, including managing the OFL calendar; sending meeting notices and other preparation as needed; managing conference registrations; and making travel reservations for in-state and out-state travel needs.
• Serve as staff liaison to Foundation Liaison Advisory Committee which includes scheduling planning calls and meetings, and serving as primary support for committee meetings.
• Support specific activities including but not limited to: researching, writing, editing, scheduling, meeting planning, event set-up, filing,…