May & Stanley Smith Charitable Trust seeks a collaborative, inquisitive, and equity-centered professional to serve as Director of Programs (DOP). The DOP leads a program team responsible for grantmaking portfolios in the Adults and Transitioning Youth with Disabilities, Foster Youth, Older Adults, and Veterans programs, and will continue to steward trust-based philanthropy practices into all programs. Please click to view the full position description or to nominate/apply.
The May & Stanley Smith Charitable Trust is a private foundation that stewards the charitable intentions of Mr. and Mrs. Smith beyond their lifetimes. The Trust envisions a just society that values each individual as vital to the strength, richness, and well-being of the whole, and in which systems are deliberately structured to provide the opportunities and resources that each person needs to reach their full potential. The Trust supports efforts aimed at the individual, community, and systems levels that empower people, including those that have been historically marginalized, to reach their highest potential. The Trust strives to work collaboratively with its grantee partners to achieve significant, lasting, positive changes that promote well-being for individuals and communities, and to strengthen and improve the systems that influence and shape their lives. In all its work, the Trust is guided by the values of Dignity, Respect, Humility, Interdependence, Stewardship, and Justice.
The Trust’s 2024-2028 Strategic Plan renews the Trust’s commitment to serve the same four populations with an even greater focus on those disproportionately impacted by inequities and injustices. The DOP works to ensure that the grants presented support the goals and strategies in the Strategic Plan, are aligned with the Trust’s mission, vision, and values, and respond to the changing needs of the communities it serves.
The Trust’s grantmaking primarily serves people in the 14 Western United States (Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming). Trust grants are awarded to organizations that provide direct services to individuals and to organizations working at the systems change and policy levels to support these focus populations. A large percentage of Trust grants are for general operating support. The Trust has four grant cycles per year, and in 2025 made 159 grants, totaling $19.1 million.
The DOP reports to the CEO and serves as part of the Trust’s leadership team comprising the CEO, the DOP, and the Director of Grants Management (DGM). The DOP leads a team of four program officers. And serves as a valued thought and advisor partner to the staff, CEO, and Trustees. The Trust is governed by a three-member Board of Trustees.
The DOP plays a central role in the planning, development, implementation, and evaluation of the Trust’s program areas and activities. In addition to leading the Program team, the DOP is responsible for a grant portfolio related to the Trust’s discretionary grantmaking. The DOP works closely with the DGM to ensure that its standards for proposals, documentation, and workflows are both grantee-centered and provide the Trust with the information needed to present funding recommendations to the Trustees for approval.
The successful candidate must reside in or willing to relocate to one of the 14 states where the Trust carries out programmatic grantmaking.
We appreciate you sharing the position description with your network, and also any nominations you might have.
For additional information or to apply, please contact Lisa Grossman and Steven Oppenheim at info[at]moppenheim[dot]com.