Assistant Director, Gift Planning, Organizations, Sciences, and Engineering

Department
 

ARD Sciences & Organizations

About the Department
 

Alumni Relations and Development (ARD) engages alumni (~220k), current students, parents, and friends of the University through intellectual, professional, and social activities on campus, around the world, and online. ARD raises $600 Million annually to support faculty and researchers, practitioners and patients, and students and programs across the University. Our work supports priorities in every division, school, department, and institute.

The Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (PME) development team works collaboratively to secure gifts and grants from individuals and institutions to support PME priorities and objectives, as set by both the PME Dean and Director of Development, and foster increased engagement with PME. The development team accomplishes these priorities through in-person meetings, carefully curated cultivation and stewardship events, and other forms of donor engagement. The team collaborates with colleagues across ARD to broaden the exposure of alumni and friends of the University of Chicago to PME.

Job Summary
 

The Assistant Director’s primary responsibilities include professional support of assigned development activities, execution of tasks related to fundraising projects, cultivation programs for prospective donors, and support in hosting the PME Advisory Council annual meetings.

This position provides professional support of assigned development activities with instruction from others. Executes fundraising projects, cultivation programs for prospective donors and for visiting committees.

Responsibilities

• Reporting to the Associate Vice President (AVP), GPOSE, conducts a variety of high-level essential, fundraising-related projects for GPOSE development efforts, including prospect management and tracking; database management; preparing prospect briefs and strategy documents; event planning and staffing; and communications directed at alumni, volunteers and friends.
• Tracks and maintains status of GPOSE campaign initiatives, including refreshing prospects lists, updating case statements/vision documents, and preparing overview items that capture campaign priorities at a high level. Keeps up to date a list of top GPOSE funding priorities, including a file of descriptive white papers, case statements and proposals for each priority.
• Prepares materials and creates internal presentations for the AVP in advance of leadership meetings to report the status of science campaign priorities, prospect trackers, strategy documents, and progress on proposals.
• Assists with prospect development and management of AVP’s portfolio.
• Assists AVP in development efforts for the newly launched Polsky Deep Tech Ventures, including qualifications, developing giving opportunities, and collaborating with campus partners to realize gifts.
• Works closely with GPOSE’s five Directors of Development, as well as GPOSE’s development writer, other team members, and departments leaders, to ensure funding priorities and strategies are aligned across the organization.
• Tracks prospect progress for key priorities within the Sciences and Engineering and assists with follow up items, including arranging on-campus meetings, prospect research, and coordinating with internal stakeholders.
• Liaise with Central Prospect Research and Prospect Management for all needs within the GPOSE team.
• Collaborates with colleagues University-wide to identify new prospects and track the prospect pool.
• Establishes and maintains donor records and accounts, including visit records, in the ARD Salesforce CRM system and prepares custom and ad hoc reports, spreadsheets, graphs and charts.
• Manages the briefing process by working directly with fundraisers, prospect research staff and other colleagues University-wide. Manages project timeline for briefing requests and delivery.
• Manages the stewardship and acknowledgment process for gifts to GPOSE from prospects engaged by the AVP and other prospect managers. Builds relationships with administrators, faculty and staff that spend these funds.
• Maintains a consistent and timely cycle of regular, custom and ad hoc reporting to donors engaged by the AVP and EVP.
• Collaborates with leadership in the creation, planning, implementation and follow-up for local and regional events for prospective and current donors of GPOSE. Tracks event outcomes as they relate to giving and engagement.
• Seeks opportunities for professional development that will enhance job performance including attending webinars, seminars, building networks within the University and with colleagues at peer institutions.
• Has a moderate/solid understanding of fundraising operations for a school or d