Job Details

American University is a student-centered research institution located in Washington, DC, with highly-ranked schools and colleges, internationally-renowned faculty, and a reputation for creating meaningful change in the world.

Department: University Strategic Initiatives

Time Type: Full time

Job Type: Regular

FLSA Status: Exempt

Work Modality: Hybrid 01 (On Campus 3-4 Days/Week)

Union: Excluded

Summary: The Director of Development, University Strategic Initiatives is a member of the University Strategic Initiatives Advancement team that is responsible for developing and implementing a comprehensive and aggressive fundraising strategy that aligns with the university’s mission, values and strategic goals for the Library, Arboretum, and Department of Student Affairs, for which the Director will have primary responsibility. Within the Strategic Initiatives portfolio, led by the Senior Director, University Strategic Initiatives, the Director will also engage donors on behalf of programs including the University’s Scholarship program, the Civic Life Initiative, and Women’s Philanthropy Initiative.

The position builds and manages a curated high-level prospect portfolio of 100+ current and prospective donors with a heavy emphasis on donors capable of making gifts of $100,000+ to $1,000,000. The Director will closely collaborate with faculty, staff, and senior administration officials to design and implement major and principal gift plans that strengthen the donor base, build the pipeline, and develop long-range plans for their portfolio of prospects’ involvement in the university.

The Director reports to and works closely with the Senior Director, University Strategic Initiatives and is involved with fundraising strategy, goalsetting, communications, advisory board management, and development-centric events. Additionally, the Director will serve as development liaison for assigned academic departments, enters, and/or program areas interfacing with directors and department heads regularly to secure program support as well as maintain pipelines for fundraising and volunteer leadership. Concurrently, the Director will collaborate with other fundraisers in the department and across the university in overall relationship building between alumni and the school.

The Director will also work with senior leaders to strategize and facilitate development trips and will coordinate all aspects of travel arrangements, event logistics, briefing, staffing, and follow-up correspondence. This position requires the ability to frequently travel up 50% of the time, as well as the ability to work occasional evenings and weekends when helping coordinate and staff regional cultivation and stewardship events. They will also be responsible for assuring that pertinent information and strategic moves for assigned prospects are properly recorded in the institutional database.

Essential Functions:

• Major Gift Prospect Cultivation, and Solicitation: Develop programs and strategies to identify, prioritize, cultivate, and solicit key prospects with capacity of $100,000+ to $1,000,000. Meet annual goals for personal performance, established in consultation with manager based on existing pipeline and overarching divisional goals. Manage a portfolio of 100+ rated major gift prospects, including alumni, foundations, corporations, parents, and friends. Communicate internally and externally in a timely, professional, and efficient manner as it relates to all ongoing cultivation and closure of gifts. Follow established standards for the documentation and acceptance of gifts. Record all contacts, strategies, and proposals in alignment with divisional expectations.
• Major Gift Prospect Identification, Strategy, and Management: Strategically determine and focus on key markets, using data to drive prioritization, and develop strategies to effectively discover and qualify prospects. Work in concert with the Office of Advancement colleagues, including particularly close collaboration with the Planned Giving team, Parents Team, Leadership Annual Giving Team, and Office of Prospect Research and Management to identify, qualify, and engage prospects. Conduct timely updating of reports, recording of action items in the database, filing of appropriate donor records and updates, filing and reconciling credit card receipts and cash reimbursements.
• Planning and Development Programs Support: Conceive, develop, implement and manage fundraising strategies and initiatives to meet university-wide priorities, in collaboration with the Senior Director. Collaborate with on-campus partners, including senior leaders and faculty members, to move potential donors through the pipeline and close gifts to benefit university priorities.
• Other Duties as Assigned: In support of the broader objectives of the Assistant Vice President for Advancement and the Vice President for Advancement.

Competencies: Acting Strategically, Prioritizing and Organizing, Acquiring and Analyzing Information, Serving Customers, Managing Performance.

Position Type/Expected Hours of Work: Full-time, 35 hours per week, Seasonal evening and weekend work for university events and programs.

Salary Range: $100,000 - $120,000 annually.

Required Education and Experience: Bachelor's degree or equivalent, 5-8 years of relevant experience, Progressively responsible major gifts development experience with at least 5-8 years of primary focus on identifying, cultivating, soliciting, closing, and stewarding major gifts from individuals and organizations; or equivalent combination of education and experience.

Preferred Education and Experience: Master's degree or equivalent, Preferred experience in higher education, with experience in alumni relations, and/or volunteer management a plus, Experience interacting comfortably with C-suite level donors, Excellent written verbal and interpersonal communications skills, Familiarity with databases and/or other fundraising systems, strong command of MS Office Suite of products.

Travel Required: This position requires travel up to 50% of the time.

Benefits: AU offers a competitive benefits package including a 200% matching retirement plan, tuition benefits for full-time staff and their families, several leadership development certificates, and has been recognized by the American Heart Association as a fit-friendly worksite. Click here to learn about American University's unique benefit options.