College Advancement Assistant

Position provides administrative and technical support to the Blackhawk Foundation, College Advancement and the College’s Financial Aid scholarship functions. Serves as a Raiser’s Edge technical expert; contributes to the planning and delivery of the Foundation’s annual fundraising activities and efforts; and acts as the liaison for the College and district community for community relations needs, requests and opportunities. The position will function as a liaison between the Foundation and Financial Aid Office to support the scholarship system, and answer and resolve student questions and inquiries. 

This position will be open until filled, with a first review date of June 15, 2026. After this date, the recruitment may close without further notice. Interested applicants are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.

Foundation, Alumni, Marketing and Community Relations Administrative Support

1. Assist with correspondence (written & email), including phone calls, newsletters, communications, postcards, social media, and internal/external website content.
2. Responsible for data integrity; maintain accurate department information and materials.
3. Provide support for the Blackhawk Foundation Board of Directors and designated Board Committee operations (coordinate and plan meetings; develop agendas; prepare materials; record meeting minutes; maintain records; etc.)
4. Facilitate outreach/communication program in coordination with Division colleagues.
5. Provide reception coverage to the President’s Office and Foundation Office in coordination with the Human Resources Assistant.
6. Coordinate the ordering of promotional and general office supplies; maintain storage spaces and records.
7. Support Community Relations by coordinating presentations and activities that promote the College’s overall Community Engagement strategic plan and objectives.

Foundation, Alumni, Marketing and Community Relations Financials and Support

1. In collaboration with the Business Office, prepare payment/billing requests between the Foundation and the College. Assist with preparing supporting documents for the financial audit and annual Form 990.
2. Coordinate bill payments, invoicing, and monitoring of budget expenditures.
3. Collaborate with the Foundation and the Business Office in the distribution and reconciliation of Foundation scholarship awards.
4. Coordinate Community Engagement initiatives including bill payments, expenditure tracking, and monitoring budget allocations for community involvement activities.

Donor Communication and Tracking

1. Facilitate communications plan, including all routine and special acknowledgements to donors, an annual report, alumni communications, and campaign mailings.
2. Provide stewardship of donors and volunteers; maintain a high standard in the production of gift agreements, timely gift acknowledgements, pledge reminders, annual donor summaries, and reports. Communicate with donors on monetary and in-kind contributions, payroll deductions, and fund balances.
3. Maintain the Raiser’s Edge donor database: set database standards for consistency and adherence to policy; streamline monthly reporting; create and maintain operational procedures manual; and train staff as needed. Responsible for complex reports, queries, exports, and imports to the database, dashboard reports, fundraising reports, and comparison reports. Import data from additional sources as needed to add constituents to the database in alignment with coding standards.
4. Serve as primary contact for operations and integration of Advancement software (including Raiser’s Edge, Blackbaud Merchant Services, and Blackbaud Hosting).

Event Planning and Activity Support

1. Assist in the coordination of fundraising activities to support the Foundation, including the development of an event plan, coordination of details, and communication/promotion of events.
2. Position will attend events to support the activity and resolve issues as they arise.
3. Assist with signature campus events as appropriate.
4. Assist the Executive Director with special community events throughout the year. Create project plans for tasks, deadlines, and responsible individuals. Coordinate external and internal correspondence to community partners, chambers, government officials, vendors, College staff and departments, and groups (i.e. student government, affinity groups, professional student organizations). Coordinate facility work orders, marketing collateral, and internal and external promotions. Attend events and resolve issues as they arise.
5. Execute alumni engagement plan and ensure operations of the alumni association, distinguished alumni awards, and continued outreach.

Student and Scholarship Support

1. Assist with student assistance programs including picking up gas cards, coordinating payment of utility bills, and submitting check requests.
2. Support the scholarship process through overall management of the online scholarship software system (Scholarship Manager).
3. Respond to student application questions and resolve system issues to ensure a smooth scholarship application process.
4. Review student information system entries related to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and needs analysis when financial aid attributes are considered in the determination of scholarship eligibility.
5. Coordinate the process for awarding scholarships including managing the scholarship review and award process for each semester.
6. Coordinate and conduct educational presentations/workshops on scholarship opportunities and FAFSA assistance in concert and collaboration with the Financial Aid Office.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

1. Ability to maintain confidentiality of student and donor information.
2. Attention to detail and data entry skills.
3. Strong written and verbal/oral communication skills with a thorough knowledge of English grammar, punctuation, and spelling.
4. Strong computer skills including proficiency in non-profit software (Raiser’s Edge).
5. Ability to work independently and problem solve with minimal instruction and supervision.
6. Ability to handle multiple projects effectively in an environment with frequent interruptions.
7. Ability to interact with diverse populations.
8. Ability to utilize, learn and troubleshoot technology related to the position.
9. Ability to navigate, post, and interact with various social media channels.

Education & Experience: 

1. Associate Degree in Administrative Professional or related field or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
2. Two (2) years of related work experience.

Blackhawk Technical College does not offer H-1B or other work authorization visa sponsorship for this position. Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States at the time of hire and maintain work authorization throughout the employment term.