Associate Director of Development (Major Gifts Officer)

About the Department:

The University Advancement division is a comprehensive development and alumni relations enterprise with a staff complement of approximately 135 FTE. Functional units within Advancement include development/fundraising, alumni relations, stewardship and donor relations, advancement communications, special events, gift processing, research, prospect management, gift planning, corporate and foundation relations, information systems and management, and infrastructure services.

Advancement's mission is to build strong, lifelong relationships with George Mason University's constituents, match donors' interests with the university's needs and priorities, and secure the financial resources necessary for Mason to achieve excellence in teaching, research, and scholarship.

The mission of the College of Education and Human Development's Office of Development and Alumni Relations is to raise private philanthropic funds in support of students, faculty, departments, programs, and centers within the college. We also explicitly support the efforts of the advancement offices of other colleges and the university as a whole. This is accomplished by building relationships with alumni, friends, parents and students and by soliciting donations, major gifts, planned gifts, and corporate and foundation support. Alumni relations are cultivated and maintained through outreach efforts.

About the Position:

The Associate Director of Development/Major Gift Officer’s primary responsibilities include working closely with the (Senior) Director of Development, Dean, Area Chairs, volunteer/advisory boards, faculty, and senior staff members to develop fundraising priorities and strategies. The position also partners with central Advancement, advancement colleagues, and college colleagues to advance philanthropic giving to key priorities through ongoing annual fundraising, alumni engagement, corporate and foundation relations, and major, principle, and planned giving.

This position is heavily focused on networking and building relationships and committed to the tracking of measures and metrics to build a pipeline of donors to support the aspirations of the dean, faculty and students of the school and the university as a whole.

Responsibilities:

Maintains Personal Portfolio and Supports Comprehensive Fundraising Program

• Successful execution of a comprehensive fundraising program that appropriately partners with and leverages resources from the central advancement team to accomplish objectives;
• Maintains a personal portfolio of 75-90 prospects and donors for major, planned, and principal level gifts;
• Actively engages each prospect in their portfolio to ensure prospect movement and portfolio penetration annually;
• Identifies corporate and foundation opportunities for support and works with relevant faculty;
• Meets or exceeds the minimum metrics for contacts, visits, solicitations and funds raised as set annual by Central Advancement;
• Responsible for the direct solicitation of gifts and for preparing the Dean, members of advisory boards, faculty and staff and other members of the College and/or University to make solicitations;
• Meets or exceeds all metrics and expectations set by Central Advancement;
• Travels as necessary for donor outreach and cultivation;
• Works with offices across campus to coordinate related activities that further the University’s mission and achieve fundraising goals;
• Finds new and creative ways to engage donors that will enrich the donor experience and add value to the academic life of the University;
• Works with staff to engage all alumni to advance the percentage of active involvement and increase alumni donations;
• Engages a wide range of colleagues, alumni, donors, prior faculty and staff, and individuals who might be able to help in pursuing/winning major gifts;
• Seeks the assistance of a wide range of people in identifying prospects who might make major gifts in the future;
• Assists with planning and implementation of school efforts to raise individual, corporate and foundation funds;
• Regularly updates supervisor as to any fundraising and relationship-building activities taking place in the school; and
• Although this position does not have responsibility for cultivating and getting gifts of under $5000, the position helps, proactively and in any way possible, team members in the school who are responsible for securing these annual and leadership annual gifts.

Supports College-level Advancement Events and Programs

• Supports cultivation, stewardship and alumni engagement opportunities including attendance;
• Coordinates fundraising with other departments and utilizes services as appropriate; and
• Works closely with Central Advancement services including, but not limited to, Planned Giving, Annual Giving, Parents and Family Philanthropy, University Priorities, Alumni Relations, Communications, Systems, Operations, Donor Relations, Gifts and Records, etc.

Performs other duties as required or assigned, which are reasonably within the scope of the duties in this job classification.

Required Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience;
• Considerable (generally three - five years) successful professional advancement and/or fundraising-related experience or any equivalent combination of education and/or experience;
• A considerable record of successful major gift solicitations and experience designing and executing donor identification, cultivation, solicitation and stewardship strategies;
• Demonstrated experience with successful collaboration with teams or stakeholders;
• Experience managing multiple projects simultaneously and meeting continuous deadlines;
• Experience documenting appropriate information in a donor management database system;
• Experience interacting with a wide variety of constituents, such as, donors, prospects, trustees, and faculty and staff;
• Excellent research skills;
• Demonstrated written and oral communication skills;
• Possess the ability to solicit and engage major donor prospects;
• Demonstrated skill in CRM fundraising software; and
• Possess understanding and the ability to articulate, the accomplishments and goals of a complex organization.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Substantial (generally six - nine years) experience in major gifts fundraising, preferably in higher education;
• Skill in Salesforce; and
• Skill in MicroStrategy, or similar reporting platform.

Instructions to Applicants:

For full consideration, applicants must apply for Associate Director of Development (Major Gifts Officer) at https://jobs.gmu.edu/. Complete and submit the online application to include three professional references, one of which must be a current supervisor, with contact information, and provide a cover letter and resume for review.

Posting Open Date: May 8, 2026

For Full Consideration, Apply by: May 25, 2026

Open Until Filled: Yes