Evan Cantiello has been a program officer at Vanguard since 2021. He is currently helping to lead Vanguard’s newest portfolio focused on improving the economic outlook for historically marginalized individuals and communities by closing the racial wealth gap. He has also helped lead Vanguard’s Social Equity portfolio and Hometown Grants, an employee lead responsive grant making portfolio in Philadelphia, Charlotte, Phoenix, and London.
Evan began his career as a case manager at Covenant House Pennsylvania serving unhoused young people. He also worked in a startup nonprofit, Back on My Feet. First, as a case manager and then as the National Program Officer launching new chapters and operating programs in 11 cities across the U.S. He pivoted into philanthropy at the Independence Blue Cross foundation where his work focused on the opioid crisis, bolstering the healthcare safety net, and driving equitable testing and vaccine distribution during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Evan is a dad and jungle gym for his two kids and holds a bachelor’s degree from Eastern University and an M.Ed. from Temple University where he studied Human Development across the lifespan. He also teaches at Rutgers University in Camden through the Urban Studies department.