Our client, Touro University www.touro.edu is a system of non-profit institutions of higher and professional education, established primarily to enrich the heritage, and to serve the larger Jewish and American community.
Under the supervision of the Vice President for Institutional Advancement, the Senior Advancement Officer identifies funding needs and solicits support from individuals, corporations and foundations either directly through meeting with existing supporters and/or creating networks of supporters, or through research, data drilling, solicitations, events, parlor meetings, and outreach to the internal stakeholders and external community. An important function of her/his job will be stewarding parlor meetings, dinners, and other donor driven events, with the goal of utilizing this outreach to cultivate existing and new supporters.
Responsibilities:
- Plans, directs and administers a gifts program including all private, corporate, and foundation giving and is responsible for achieving objectives critical to the overall fundraising success.
- Oversees the stewardship of donors, gifts and prospects.
- Ensures integration with the overall campus strategic plan.
- Develops proposals, identifies prospects, solicits funding and endowments, and tracks donors.
- Maintains a portfolio of major prospects for cultivation, solicitation and stewardship using a variety of outreach methods including stewarding parlor meetings and events.
- Identifies new prospective major gift donors and develop long-range plans for their involvement in the School.
- Monitors all prospect contacts to ensure positive and purposeful prospect and donor relations.
- Provides assistance with major gift prospects assigned to other university development staff as requested and serve as a resource for development colleagues.
- Works collaboratively with and in support of volunteers, other development and advancement staff, and other College representatives to cultivate and solicit donors for college-wide priorities.
- Arranges fundraising calls for the President, VP and senior staff and accompanies them on the calls.
- Develops and implements plans for volunteer deployment during campaigns and other special initiatives.
- Assists the administration by identifying and prioritizing institutional funding needs; keeps abreast of institutional priorities, programs, and events for use in development efforts.
Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s Degree, Masters preferred
- At least seven years successful experience in major gift fundraising; experience in higher education a plus
- Knowledge of individual, corporate, and foundation fundraising techniques and program development to include all aspects of proposal development, prospect identification, fund solicitation, endowments, and donor tracking
- Ability to provide strong leadership in the development and implementation of program policies, needs assessment, procedures related to the full range of fundraising
- Ability to rapidly become familiar with university wide program areas, and to establish and maintain effective working relationships on and off campus
- Ability to communicate effectively using a high level of written and oral communication skills, persuasiveness, imagination and insight into developing relationships with individuals and sponsors
- Knowledge of and technically familiar with traditional and innovative fundraising programs
- Ability to develop solutions to complex problems that require the use of ingenuity and creativity
- Ability to present the aims and objectives of the development program in a manner that effectively informs and persuades others
- Ability to understand the needs and interests of leadership and major gift donors in order to develop relationships between them and the college
- Dedication to promoting the college’s fundraising priorities through developing excellent relationships with faculty, senior academic leaders, trustees, volunteers, and the advancement office team
- Demonstrated leadership and ability to successfully manage multiple assignments.
- Successful experience in making cold calls as well as developing cultivation and solicitation strategies.
- Must have excellent interpersonal skills and a demonstrated record of completing assignments.
- Significant experience staffing major gift volunteers
- Demonstrated ability to develop and implement programs that support effective fundraising, preferably in a complex university environment.
- Must have ability to travel
Computer Skills:
- Basic Proficiency in Microsoft Office including, Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook
- Internet Research