Executive Director (EBSF

The Elmina

B. Sewall Foundation (EBSF or the Foundation) is a private foundation with a long-term commitment to improving the well-being of people, animals, and the environment of Maine. The Foundation is committed to supporting initiatives that promote healthy and whole lives for all people, protect and enhance land and water quality and productivity, ensure the humane treatment of animals, and stimulate long-term development while building local opportunity.

The Foundation also invests in community engagement that builds social equity and strengthens participation for collective benefit. Looking to the future, the Foundation’s leadership is assessing Maine’s unique assets and challenges and charting a bold way forward in service of its mission to empower communities, foster innovation, and model effective investment for sustainable change. Following a period of growth and organizational development and building on a legacy of philanthropy and innovation, the Foundation now seeks applications and nominations for its next Executive Director (ED).

The new ED will be a visionary leader, strategist, and partner to the Board and staff in the achievement of EBSF’s vision of integrated, equity-driven philanthropy and full mission alignment of operations, systems, and culture.

Since 2011, EBSF has awarded over $66 million in grants to support communities and organizations working to empower, advance and protect Maine’s most crucial resources – people and communities, land and water, and a complex, diverse social fabric of traditions and valued connections. EBSF has expanded its approaches beyond grantmaking to incorporate investment practices that are mission-aligned. With a firm commitment to being guided by and grounded in its values, the Foundation now seeks to grow its impact and contribute to the collective knowledge of integrated, community-embedded philanthropy.

Reporting to and partnering closely with the Board of Directors, the Executive Director will join a deeply committed and talented staff to realize EBSF’s mission and to guide and manage its operations, culture, and external partnerships in alignment with the Foundation’s values . The ED will be a passionate team-builder and gifted developer of systems that promote collaboration, communication, and organizational effectiveness.

The ED will develop strong relationships with the Board of Directors in support of their oversight of program strategy and impact and will support a culture of mutual learning and transparency that deepens capacity for effective engagement and governance. As chief ambassador and spokesperson for the Foundation, the ED will bring keen instincts for strategic use of the Foundation’s voice to elevate community partners and effectively engage stakeholders with humility and for mutual benefit.

S/he/they will actively contribute to the field of philanthropy, sharing learning as a leader and innovator.

The successful candidate will be a seasoned leader and organizational strategist with a proven track record of conceiving and implementing innovative ideas and approaches to effecting community change at the local and systemic levels. An inclusive leadership style, outstanding organizational management skills, and experience building and supporting high-functioning teams are essential. A natural convener and relationship builder, s/he/they will bring a demonstrated commitment to deepening the Foundation’s collective understanding of the structural drivers of inequity and their impact on Maine’s communities.

Elmina

B. Sewall learned early in life about the importance of philanthropy. When she was a young girl, her father gave her two piggy banks for her weekly allowance: one for her spending money and the other for charity. This early lesson in giving and sharing made a lasting impression and influenced Mrs. Sewall’s attitudes toward giving back to community and making a difference to society.

Spending time on her grandfather’s farm imbued her with a lifelong love of animals and open spaces, two important influences on her future philanthropy.

Mrs. Sewall moved to Maine in 1949 and settled along the…