DONSIA STRONG HILL, director

Donsia Strong Hill is Executive Vice President, Impact Strategies of Cinnaire, a nonprofit financial services organization that invests in people and places to transform communities through capital investments and development. She is an accomplished senior executive, attorney and strategist, with extensive leadership experience.

Her career of 20 years of leadership and management includes more than 10 years of government service ranging from a state cabinet level position responsible for a $23 million-dollar biennial budget to senior positions within the federal government in Washington, D.C. Prior to her current position, Donsia served as Senior Vice President for Corporate Capital Strategy and led the creation and implementation of Cinnaire’s $55 million equitable access fund to support affordable housing development for emerging developers in the Midwest who have faced systemic barriers to securing traditional funding sources.

In a previous role, she led LISC Milwaukee’s strategic direction and partnership efforts while managing a network of relationships that spanned neighborhood organizations and funders to business leaders and policymakers and developed creative partnerships leading to more than $10 million in community development loans. (Nationally, LISC leads in the provision of community development affordable housing financing.) Prior to joining LISC, Donsia cofounded a law firm specializing in complex tax credit, bond, and equity funded community development and public finance transactions valued at over $3 billion.

Until very recently, Donsia served as secretary/treasurer of the board of directors for Cinnaire Solutions, a nonprofit, mission-driven real estate development company with $19 million in assets and a development pipeline valued at $95 million. She is also on the advisory committee for REVIT Capital Impact Investment Fund with a $100 million target fund size. Earlier this year, Donsia was appointed an inaugural member of the Affordable Housing Committee of National Multifamily Housing Council.

Donsia holds a Juris Doctor from the John Marshall Law School and Master in Public Administration from Harvard University. Her honors include being named a recipient of the Illinois State University, College of Applied Science and Technology inaugural Hall of Fame Award and an Athena Award for service from the Green Bay Chamber of Commerce. Donsia was named a 2017, 2018 and 2019 Powerbroker by Milwaukee Business Journal and one of its 2018 Women of Influence.