Director of Philanthropy (Public Relations & Marketing Specialist IV)

Title: Director of Philanthropy (Public Relations & Marketing Specialist IV)

Agency: Laurel Ridge Community College

Location: Frederick - 069

FLSA: Exempt

Hiring Range: The hiring range for this position is $69,045.00-$100,116.00.

Full Time or Part Time: Full Time

Additional Detail

Job Description:

Laurel Ridge Community College seeks an experienced Director of Philanthropy to secure charitable support for the College and its students while raising awareness of the College and its impact in the community.

Reporting to the Associate Vice President of Development/Executive Director of the Laurel Ridge Educational Foundation, the Director of Philanthropy is a senior, front-line fundraiser, responsible for developing new prospects and engaging current and lapsed donors throughout Laurel Ridge's service region.

The Director manages a portfolio of donors and prospects and brings strong relationship-building skills and disciplined follow-through. The position requires someone who listens carefully to donors' interests and motivations, connects those interests with opportunities at the College, and makes philanthropic asks.

With a commitment to the College's mission, the Director collaborates with Laurel Ridge colleagues and community partners and helps build a culture of philanthropy in which gifts at all levels are valued.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage a donor and prospect pipeline with discipline.
• Identify prospective donors through networking, referrals, community engagement, and research.
• Cultivate prospective donors and steward existing donor relationships.
• Personally solicit and secure philanthropic commitments, including major and planned gifts.
• Develop and implement strategies to retain and deepen donor relationships and re-engage lapsed donors.
• Work closely with the Executive Director and Laurel Ridge colleagues to understand institutional priorities, identify philanthropic opportunities, and connect these opportunities with donor interests.
• Develop donor proposals, presentations, solicitations, stewardship materials, and other philanthropic communications
• Maintain timely donor and prospect records and document next steps.
• Assess fundraising progress and opportunities and recommend strategies to the Executive Director.
• Work closely with the Marketing and Communications team to promote philanthropy and the role of the educational foundation.
• Participate in planning and supporting Foundation events.
• Represent Laurel Ridge at events on campus and in the community.
• The position requires frequent travel throughout Laurel Ridge's service region for donor meetings, college activities, and community events.
• Participate in occasional evening and weekend activities as necessary
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Position Schedule and Other Considerations:

This position requires on-site presence, with one day a week telework. The director's assigned office is at the Middletown Campus. The position requires frequent travel throughout Laurel Ridge's service region for donor meetings, college activities, and community events. The position requires occasional evening and weekend activities.

Special Instructions for Applicants

• This position requires applicants to submit a sample of professional writing previously prepared for an external audience. Please do not create a new writing sample specifically for this application. Confidential or proprietary information should be redacted.

• The writing sample should demonstrate the candidate's ability to communicate persuasively. Examples include donor or client proposals, solicitations, sponsorship requests, stewardship communications, or similar professional correspondence. Identify the intended audience, purpose of the communication, the outcome, and your role in preparing the submitted material.

• Initial review of applications will begin on September 28.

• Interviews are scheduled for October 14 and 15.

• Candidates interested in being considered for a posted position are required to submit an online application. Upload cover letter (this is optional, but recommended) and resume (this is optional but recommended).

• Reference checks, background screenings, and eVerify are required for all Laurel Ridge positions. Satisfactory reference, background screenings are a condition of employment.

Compensation and Benefits

The hiring range for this position is $69,045.00-$100,116.00. The position is classified staff and as such is eligible for the benefits package offered by the Commonwealth of Virginia for state agencies. For more information, please visit www.dhrm.virginia.gov.

Click here to learn about Laurel Ridge Community College.

Laurel Ridge Community College is dedicated to the goal of building a culturally diverse and pluralistic faculty and staff committed to teaching and working in a diverse environment, and strongly encourages applications from women, minorities, individuals with disabilities, and veterans. In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Laurel Ridge will provide, if requested, reasonable accommodation to applicants in order to provide access to the application, interviewing, and selection process. Please email eeo@laurelridge.edu for further information.

Sponsorship of an employee's work authorization takes time and requires an ongoing financial investment. Therefore, Laurel Ridge Community College does not have funding to sponsor potential employees in the US on a work visa and F-1 post-completion Optional Practical Training (OPT). We consistently follow this funding model to ensure our practices are not discriminatory. Exceptions would require approval from the college president.

Laurel Ridge Community College is an equal opportunity institution providing educational and employment opportunities, programs, services, and activities. While honoring bona fide occupational exceptions as needed, the college shall promote and maintain equal employment and educational opportunities without regard to race, color, religion, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, ethnicity, marital status, pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions including lactation, age, status as a veteran, national origin, or other non-merit factors. The college also promotes a safe working environment and prohibits sexual misconduct, including sexual violence and harassment. Know your rights!

Minimum Qualifications:

• Significant and progressively responsible experience in fundraising, sales, business development, government relations, or another revenue-generating role. (Per DHRM Policy, significant experience indicates advanced expertise characterized by leadership, strategic impact, process improvement, or recognized subject matter expertise.)
• Significant experience with donor/customer/client acquisition, retention, and stewardship, including personal responsibility for securing financial commitments.
• Ability to develop and implement successful strategies to achieve fundraising, sales, business development, or other revenue goals.
• Ability to create persuasive proposals and written materials and deliver effective presentations to external audiences.
• Ability to build successful relationships with external stakeholders through networking, partnerships, and community engagement.

Additional Considerations:

• Experience working in advancement for a nonprofit organization or higher education institution preferred.
• Demonstrated experience cultivating, soliciting, and securing charitable gifts preferred.
• Experience using a CRM or fundraising database to maintain donor or prospect records, track interactions and next steps, and support relationship management and fundraising activities preferred.