NEW HANOVER COUNTY — The New Hanover Community Endowment announced its second leader in its five-year infancy has stepped down from his role as president and chief executive officer.
READ MORE: Endowment CEO talks relationship with local governments, housing and new ‘roadmap’ strategy
Dan Winslow called his short stint at The Endowment a privilege in a Monday announcement sharing his resignation.
“I’ve made the difficult decision to step away to refocus my time and attention on other priorities,” he wrote. “While this wasn’t an easy choice, I am proud of the work we’ve done, in partnership with the board, state, CAC and the strong network of partners in New Hanover County, to introduce the ‘grants rainbow’ and further define the Endowment’s strategic vision. I am confident that this work will continue and will truly transform the county.”
Since officially stepping into the Endowment CEO position last October, Winslow has led the organization through personnel changes and stood up new departments, implemented a new tiered system to dole out grants, honed the strategic plan, and helped execute more than $7 million in funding to area nonprofits this year.
Winslow was hired at The Endowment less than a year ago; the organization announced he would take the reins last August. This came following a national search after its inaugural CEO, William Buster, resigned in February 2024.
Winslow moved from Massachusetts after working in all three branches of government, as well as in the business and nonprofit sectors. He was a former judge and a Massachusetts House representative from 2011 to 2013. Also a lawyer, Winslow led the New England Legal Foundation (NELF) in Boston, founded in 1977, as it championed “individual economic liberties, traditional property rights, properly limited government, and inclusive economic growth.”
The Endowment’s Board of Directors — 13 members appointed by Novant Health and New Hanover County Commissioners, with two chosen by the Endowment — accepted Winslow’s resignation, Monday’s release noted.
“Thanks to Dan’s leadership, we’ve made significant progress and built momentum towards transforming New Hanover County,” Endowment Chair Shannon Winslow said. “Dan has played a critical role in operationalizing the Endowment’s vision and building a talented team to carry the work forward. We’re grateful for his contributions and wish him the best in his next chapter.”
The board appointed Sophie Dagenais to serve as interim CEO to take over supervising the day-to-day actions. Dagenais has been the Endowment’s vice president of programs and grants for the past five months. Before joining the Endowment, she was an assistant dean at Syracuse University and led the Baltimore Civic Site at the Annie E. Casey Foundation, a $3.4 billion charitable organization. She also served as chief of state to the Baltimore mayor.
The Endowment was created with $1.25-billion from the $1.5-billion sale of New Hanover Regional Medical Center to Novant. Today the Endowment consists of $1.6 billion due to investment returns, and by 2028 the organization will be required to give out 5% of its funds, or $80 million, annually.
Port City Daily asked about next steps in the search for Winslow’s replacement and whether the board would undergo another national hunt or revert back to its pool of contenders from last year. A representative from the PR firm Eckel and Vaughan Group, which released the news to media on Monday, said there were no further details available.
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