Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Education Portfolio Director
Bush Foundation
Ballinger | Leafblad is proud to present the following information on
behalf of our client, the Bush Foundation, in its search for an
Education Portfolio Director.
bushfoundation.org ballingerleafblad.com
presenting our client
Bush Foundation
ORGANIZATIONAL OVERVIEW
The Bush Foundation is a private foundation based in St. Paul, Minnesota focused on investing in
great ideas and the people who power them. Established in 1953 by 3M executive Archibald Bush
and his wife, Edyth, the Foundation works in communities across Minnesota, North Dakota, South
Dakota and the 23 Native nations that share the same geography. Learn more about their work at
BushFoundation.org.
WHAT THE FOUNDATION DOES
The Foundation uses its resources – financial and otherwise – to inspire and support creative
problem solving, within and across sectors, to make our region better for everyone.
The Foundation does this in two primary ways:
1. by supporting people and organizations working on the issues that are most important to
their communities. The primary programs in this area include:
o Communications and Convenings, where the Foundation shares stories of the people
and organizations they invest in, and creates and supports events that inspire, equip and
connect people across the regions served.
o Community Innovation grants and the Bush Prize, where the Foundation supports
organizations who are trying or demonstrating innovative approaches to solving
community problems.
o Leadership Programs, connecting leaders with people and ideas through the Bush
Fellowship Program and Change Network.
2. by advancing specific strategic issues that are a priority to the Foundation through our
strategic initiatives. Their current strategic initiatives include:
o Education – The guiding goal for our Education initiative is to make our region the
national leader in providing individualized education that meets the needs and
ambitions of all students.
o Nation Building and Government Redesign – The goal of our Native Nation Building
and Government Redesign initiative is to support Native self‐determination and help
governments solve problems by better understanding and designing for the people
they serve.
o Community Creativity – The guiding goal of our Community Creativity initiative is
to make art a central element of problem solving on more issues, across more sectors
and in more communities throughout the region.
o Social Business Ventures – The guiding goal of our Social Business Ventures initiative
is to make our region the best place in the country to launch and grow social purpose
businesses.
bushfoundation.org ballingerleafblad.com
presenting our client
Bush Foundation
BUSH FOUNDATION VALUES
In 2013, the Bush Foundation adopted five operating values that guide the way we work. They are:
Spread Optimism. We encourage individuals and organizations to think bigger and think differently
about what is possible. We are positive and supportive in our internal and external interactions.
Work Beyond Ourselves. We actively seek opportunities to work in true collaboration with others to
have more impact. We are willing to both lead and follow. We candidly share what we learn with
others.
Everybody Matters. We are a champion for both excellence and equity inside and out of the
Foundation. We have fair, open and inclusive processes. We work to raise overall quality of life while
also closing opportunity and achievement gaps.
Steward Well. We demonstrate appreciation for the Foundation’s history and thoughtfully build on its
legacy. We hold ourselves to high standards of integrity and accountability and conduct ourselves in a
way that we hope would make our founders proud.
More Good Every Year. We are a true learning organization and work to be smarter and more
effective every year. We never lose sight of the reason we exist: to do the most possible good with the
resources left to the community by Archibald G. Bush.
bushfoundation.org ballingerleafblad.com
presenting our client
Bush Foundation
EQUITY STATEMENT
Equity is central to the Bush Foundation’s purpose: to inspire and support creative problem solving,
within and across sectors, to make the region better for everyone.
TO INSPIRE AND SUPPORT CREATIVE PROBLEM SOLVING
Diversity of thought is a critical ingredient in creativity and innovation. Communities are smarter and
stronger when they draw from a wide variety of experience, perspective and wisdom.
TO MAKE OUR REGION BETTER FOR EVERYONE
The Bush Foundation is about place — a region of three states and 23 Native nations. This region’s
future will be defined by how well every person in it does — at home, in school, at work and in the
community. This region’s future, therefore, depends on institutions and systems that work well for
all people. Too many do not.
This is not just about whether organizations are intentionally excluding or disadvantaging people.
Racism, for example, is not only hateful acts. Racism, can also be embedded in policies and practices
that are well‐intended and meant to work for all, but just don’t. Organizational failings, big and small,
combine to systemically exclude and disadvantage people. These barriers limit individual opportunity
and limit our collective regional potential.
Every person in our region can impact institutions and systems. Institutions and systems are created
and perpetuated by people. To change institutions and systems is to change the minds and the
actions of people. There is a role for all of us to play.
At the Bush Foundation, we believe that bridging cultural differences and adapting organizations to
work well for everyone are essential skills for leaders to be relevant and effective — whatever their
purpose and whatever their politics. These are skills one has to learn and practice.
It is learning about and understanding your own history and context and why you think and
act the way you do. It is learning about and understanding other people’s history and context
and why they think and act the way they do. And it is empathetically adapting to work
effectively across differences.
It is the ability to examine policies and practices to see who may be excluded or
disadvantaged by them, regardless of the intent. And it is the ability to work with those
affected by policies and practices to design and redesign them to work well for everyone.
bushfoundation.org ballingerleafblad.com
presenting our client
Bush Foundation
Within the Bush Foundation, we are working on these skills to bring an equity lens to all we do.
Without a doubt, definitions of and conversations about equity and inclusion have changed since
Archibald Bush’s generation. Our stated commitment to uplifting the whole region has not. We have
struggled at times to live up to our aspirations; at times our actions have contributed to social,
economic and racial disparities. Those shortcomings are real opportunities for us to think and act
differently about how we advance equity in our region.
As a charitable foundation, we have a particular obligation to live up to high standards of diversity,
equity and inclusion. We have a power in the issues we raise, the questions we ask, and the people
and organizations we fund. For us to be effective in addressing issues in communities throughout
the region, we must be sensitive to and savvy about differences such as culture, race, income,
gender identity, geography, physical ability, religious belief, or any other difference that is
meaningful in understanding an issue and how it might be addressed. We see equity as part and
parcel of excellence. And we are committed to becoming excellent.
As we work toward being more equitable, we plan to publicly share our successes and setbacks in
hopes we can be useful to others. We do so with humility and recognition that we are — and will
always be — a work in progress.
bushfoundation.org ballingerleafblad.com
presenting the position of
Education Portfolio Director
OVERVIEW OF POSITION
The Education Portfolio Director is a member of the Strategy and Learning team ‐‐ the home for the
Bush Foundation strategic initiatives. Each of these initiatives (currently Education, Nation Building
and Government Redesign, Community Creativity and Social Business Ventures) advances a
particular goal to make the region better for everyone. These portfolios are at varying degrees of
development; when fully implemented, each will include 1) investments in major partnerships with
innovative organizations that are achieving results 2) ecosystem grants where the Foundation
provides operating support to organizations that create the environment where change can flourish,
and 3) support for movement building activities, communications and evaluation to advance the
goals.
Job Purpose
The Education Portfolio Director develops and executes strategies to advance the Foundation’s
guiding education goal of making our region the national leader in providing individualized education
that meets the needs and ambitions of all students.
PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES
Lead strategy development and execution of the Foundation’s Education strategy including
shaping the approach, criteria and process for selecting and managing both existing and new
investments.
Cultivate and manage relationships with existing grantees and partners.
Oversee the selection and management of Education ecosystem grants and collaborate in the
cross‐Foundation ecosystem grants process.
Work with the Strategy & Learning team to set portfolio management strategy and processes
across focus areas. Share functional responsibilities such as grants selection and evaluation with
other Strategic Initiative Portfolio Directors.
Develop and implement evaluation and learning strategies for the Foundation’s Education
investments.
Supervise strategy and learning staff who support the work of multiple strategic initiatives.
Represent the Foundation in external leadership roles to advance the Education goal and other
strategic initiatives.
Serve on the Foundation’s Management Team to ensure cross‐team alignment on strategic
direction and operations. Participate in recruiting and selection of grantees and Fellows on other
teams as needed.
Actively demonstrate core organizational values in performing all duties.
bushfoundation.org ballingerleafblad.com
presenting the position of
Education Portfolio Director
DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS
At least seven years of experience in relevant public, nonprofit or related private sector fields
with significant experience leading or managing initiatives related to education.
Deep knowledge of Education issues and ecosystem in the Upper Midwest. We expect that the
successful candidate will have experience leading, developing or implementing individualized
learning strategies.
Strong network of relevant relationships within the Bush Foundation funding region.
Exceptional strategic and analytical skills with demonstrated success developing new strategies.
Effective and adaptable communication and interpersonal skills. Demonstrated success working
with teams and within highly inclusive and participatory decision‐making processes.
Demonstrated ability to effectively interact, communicate and collaborate with people from a
wide range of cultural backgrounds. Deep interest in diversity, equity and inclusion issues.
Supervisory experience is required with demonstrated ability to motivate and inspire people to
meet their goals.
Able to work independently, interpreting and applying strategic guidelines with minimal
direction and incomplete information. Comfortable in fluid and dynamic work settings.
ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT
The Education Portfolio Director reports to Strategy & Learning Vice President Allison Barmann,
serves on the Foundation’s Management Team and supervises one or more Strategy & Learning
team members. Some travel and schedule adjustments will be necessary in this position.
bushfoundation.org ballingerleafblad.com
presenting the position of
Education Portfolio Director
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
For more information about this position, please join Strategy & Learning Vice President Allison
Barmann and Talent Development Director Stephanie Andrews for an informational webinar on
Friday, May 18 from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. central time.
Click this link https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6956893034035717890 to register for the
webinar. If you wish to remain anonymous as an attendee during the webinar, please register as
Archibald Bush. A recording of the webinar will be available at www.bushfoundation.org/about‐
us/careers a few days after the webinar airs live.
For additional information and/or to apply for the position please email a cover letter, current
resume and compensation requirements to Lars Leafblad via lars‐at‐ballingerleafblad.com. Review
of candidates will begin immediately.
The Bush Foundation is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer
bushfoundation.org ballingerleafblad.com