In the culmination of a two-year transition process for Potlatch Fund, Board President Kirby Jock today announced the selection of a new Executive Director by the Potlatch Fund Board of Directors commencing on June 1, 2011.

Ms. Dana Arviso, current Potlatch Fund Finance and Evaluation Manager, will replace current Executive Director, Mr. Ken Gordon, in August this year.

Mr. Jock said “The Potlatch organization has been working diligently toward this vital leadership transition for a long time.  We developed a plan with a definitive date where Mr. Gordon was going to step aside, and overlap his tenure with a new Executive Director for a three-month period. Our Board and Staff have consistently risen to meet the challenges posed by this kind of transition, and I am very proud of their work in making Potlatch Fund solid throughout this time of change.”

As the outgoing Executive Director during the three-month executive transition, Mr. Gordon will continue to serve Potlatch Fund in an advisory and consultative role to Ms. Arviso the incoming Executive Director.

“Our transition has been helped immensely by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which gave us an invaluable resource to plan for all aspects of this leadership change. The grant enabled us to carry out a national search and at the same time invest in our existing staff to improve their ability to competitively apply for the role.  We offer our most sincere thanks to the Gates Foundation.”

Ms. Arviso initially started working at Potlatch Fund as a volunteer while undertaking postgraduate studies at the University of Washington. Since then, she has become an alumnus of the First Nations Development Institutes LEAD Program, completed non-profit Executive Training programs at the UW Cascade Center, and is a current participant in Leadership Tomorrow. In addition to her non-profit work for Potlatch Fund, she is also a member of the Board of Native Americans in Philanthropy, co-chair of the Social Justice Fund Northwest, and an Ex-Officio Board Member for Longhouse Media.

Ms. Arviso is a member of the Diné (Navajo), grew up on the Bishop Paiute-Shoshone Reservation and has also lived in Alaska. Ms. Arviso said “I am humbled by the faith placed in me by the Potlatch Fund Board and by the support that has been offered as I transition into this role. I look forward to continuing to build upon the success of Potlatch Fund, as we work to expand philanthropy in Indian Country”.

Mr. Jock concluded by stating, “It is my hope that everyone out there in the Potlatch Fund community will take a moment to welcome Dana as our new Executive Director  at Potlatch Fund, and also take a moment to express their gratitude to Ken for his outstanding efforts and commitment to Indian Country during his tenure as the Potlatch Fund Executive Director. We continue to be very fortunate to have such talented and dedicated people working to support our mission, on behalf of the Native peoples of the Northwest.”