Joseph Brooks

Managing Director

Joseph Brooks is a Managing Director at ViaNova, based in Milwaukee and Chicago. He advises primarily ultra-high-net-worth individuals and families, family foundations, and family offices on developing philanthropic strategies and launching and managing philanthropic initiatives and structures over time.

Joseph brings to ViaNova deep experience across education, health, and community philanthropy, with particular expertise advising wealthy individuals and families and leading complex, high-impact initiatives. Earlier in his career, he served as a high school teacher in Chicago Public Schools—an experience that provided firsthand insight into the interwoven, systemic challenges many philanthropists seek to address and that continues to shape his approach. In addition to his advisory work, Joseph serves on the boards of two foundations and on the board of the Purposeful Planning Institute, which supports the practice development of cross-domain advisors serving enterprise and ultra-high-net-worth families.

Previously, Joseph held senior advancement and philanthropic leadership roles at three major universities and later led the philanthropic advising team at the Greater Milwaukee Foundation, where he supported philanthropists and donor collaboratives in directing significant philanthropic investments to launch and grow major community initiatives. He holds a BA from Lawrence University, an MPA from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, and an MBA from Marquette University, and is a Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy (CAP) and a Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE).