The Joyce Foundation is pleased to welcome Whitney Smith as its new Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer. Smith, a corporate leader and most recently head of regional philanthropy for North America at JPMorgan Chase & Co., will join the Foundation in June. She replaces outgoing EVP Darren Reisberg, who was named president of Hartwick College in April.
The move marks a return to the Foundation for Smith, who served in various roles at Joyce from 2005-2015, including Senior Program Director. She also managed the Employment Program portfolio, and what is now the Foundation’s Education & Economic Mobility program.
“Given the core role of our EVP, it was important to move quickly to find the right person to step in. I am so pleased that Whitney Smith is returning to the Foundation to serve as our next Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer,” said Foundation President & CEO Ellen S. Alberding. “Whitney will bring significant experience to our management team as a strategic grantmaker and thought leader focused on bringing economic opportunity to communities across the country. We very much look forward to working together.”
Over the last six years, Smith has led philanthropic strategy and investments in North America at JPMorgan Chase & Co., which included more than $100M in grant making annually aimed at improving economic opportunity for people in the region. She played an integral role in implementing the firm’s $2 billion philanthropic effort - a piece of its overall $30 billion Racial Equity Commitment. She previously was an associate director of the Chicago Jobs Council. Smith is also Chair of the Board of Directors for the National Fund for Workforce Solutions, and is a co-founder of Workforce Matters and the Chicagoland Workforce Funders Alliance.
“I’m so proud to rejoin Joyce and continue the work of advancing the Foundation’s formidable strategy and commitment to racial equity and improving lives for the next generation in the Great Lakes region,” Smith said.
Smith holds a Bachelor's degree from Bowdoin College and a Master's degree in social service administration from the University of Chicago.
About The Joyce Foundation
Joyce is a nonpartisan, private foundation that invests in evidence-informed public policies and strategies to advance racial equity and economic mobility for the next generation in the Great Lakes region.