Philanthropy Officer- Berea College
Eliminating tuition costs for all 1,600 students. That’s the difference Philanthropy Officers make at Berea College.
Along with committed colleagues in the division of Alumni, Communications & Philanthropy, Philanthropy Officers (POs) play a key role in advancing the distinctive mission of Berea College, which admits only academically promising students with limited financial resources, primarily from Appalachia. At Berea, no student pays for tuition. But, as one of nine federally recognized work colleges, all students work 10 hours or more weekly, earning money for books, housing, and meals.
To support Berea’s mission of providing a Tuition Promise Scholarship to every admitted student, Philanthropy Officers help the College meet an annual fund goal of nearly $5 million dollars to supplement income from Berea’s $1.5 billion endowment. In the immediate future, Philanthropy Officers will be integral to the success of a capital campaign that aims to raise $10 million in support of two state-of-the-art technology facilities.
To meet these ambitious goals, Philanthropy Officers cultivate relationships with alumni and friend donors that lead to major outright gifts, life income gifts, and bequests. These relationships are built by connecting donors’ charitable interests with the multi-faceted mission of the College. It is a process that requires understanding donors’ passions, effectively conveying the College’s remarkable story, and sustaining a relationship with donors in a thoughtful and personal way.
Candidates for the position should share a deep connection to the mission of the College and thrive in a dynamic, collaborative, inclusive, and goal-oriented environment. Candidates should embrace a donor-centered philosophy and find fulfillment in helping donors achieve their philanthropic goals. The position is based on Berea’s beautiful and historic campus; extensive travel, evening work, and occasional weekend engagements are part of a successful Philanthropy Officer’s experience.
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Brief Summary of This Position
The Philanthropy Officer is responsible for developing and carrying out strategies and activities resulting in discovery, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of a portfolio of donors capable of making gifts of $50,000 or more to Berea College.
Primary Duties and Responsibilities
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Regular and predictable attendance is essential. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
- Build and manage an appropriate portfolio of alumni and friend donors capable of making gifts of $50,000 or more to the College. Responsibilities include developing and carrying out effective strategies for discovery, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of major gift donors while completing a significant number of meaningful contacts, proposals, and other strategic contacts per year.
- Collaborate with colleagues to execute strategies, and recruit the appropriate involvement of college leadership, volunteers, and others to build relationships and secure support.
- Assist the director, divisional leaders, and colleagues in other duties as assigned to meet the challenges and opportunities of Berea’s philanthropy goals.
- Demonstrate fiscal responsibility and thoughtful planning in the use and care of all College resources, including staff and student time; funds budgeted for travel, telephone, events, or other activities; and property such as vehicles, computers, cell phones, etc.
- Participate actively in all required and requested meetings, openly contributing ideas and suggestions to strengthen Berea’s philanthropy program.
- As required, plan and participate in cultivation and alumni events; occasionally recruit and support volunteer associates.
- Serve as a teacher and mentor to junior colleagues and to students as opportunities arise.
- Participate in professional development activities as suggested/needed.
Other roles/duties will be assigned as necessary to assist the College in the attainment of the goals set forth and the enhancement of a positive, respectful learning environment for all staff, faculty and students.
Education Requirements
Experience Requirements
- Minimum 3 years of successful fundraising (higher education setting preferred) with demonstrated success in soliciting and closing major gifts.
- 5 years of experience with demonstrated success in a related field such as sales may be considered.
Special Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities
- A commitment to the special mission of Berea College.
- Ability to articulate the importance of Berea’s distinctive place in higher education and an integrated vision for support to the College.
- Demonstrated negotiation and solicitation skills.
- Highly-developed executive organizational and follow through skills and capacity to determine priorities.
- Ability to manage several development activities and strategies simultaneously while maintaining timeframes.
- Excellent communication (oral and written) and interpersonal skills.
- Unwavering integrity, discretion, patience, persistence, good judgment, sense of self, and emotional intelligence; a committed team member who contributes to and celebrates others’ success.
- Ability to work independently to integrate disparate information and recognize opportunities to create effective strategies that inspire increased support from donors.
- Knowledge of or capacity to learn and articulate concepts of planned giving, foundation, and corporate giving strategies.
- Significant administrative work, including travel planning, itinerary building, correspondence, and accurate and timely documentation of all work.
License, Certification, or Registration Requirements:
- Valid driver’s license and good driving record.
- Required background check
Physical Requirements
- Extensive travel (up to 50%) and phone work required.
- Ability to navigate campus/public buildings and grounds
- Ability to travel independently by car and/or plane (navigate airports with luggage and portable computer)
- Ability to occasionally lift up to 20 lbs
- Must be able to navigate airports with luggage and portable computer.
- Must be able to drive a car on extended trips with significant daily mileage.
Environmental Conditions
- Extensive travel.
- Professional office environment with interruptions and noise due to frequent visitors, students, staff and faculty when not traveling.
- Administrative support shared with other philanthropy officers.
- Evening and weekend work as necessary.
Ability to Operate the Following Vehicles or Equipment
- Vehicle- College cars/vans. Personal car when necessary.
- Golf cart (training provided).
- Laptop and tablet, with strong aptitude for the following tasks:
- Use of Internet to obtain information and book travel arrangements.
- Use of Microsoft programs, including Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Teams
- Navigating various software platforms that support daily activities.
- Data entry of contact reports and prospect tracking information.
- Cell phone and institution’s phone/voice mail system.
More about Berea College
Founded in 1855, Berea College achieved national distinction as the first coeducational and interracial college in the South. With an emphasis on service to the people of Appalachia and beyond, Berea enrolls 1,600 students from 40 states and 70 countries. The College has a long-standing commitment to interracial education; here, people of different races seek to learn from and about each other, while also living together.
Berea is among the most racially diverse private liberal arts colleges in the United States. It admits only students whose families are unable to afford the high cost of tuition and awards each of them a Tuition Promise Scholarship, meaning no student ever pays tuition. Berea’s students excel in the College’s supportive but demanding academic environment, and many are the first in their families to graduate from college. Washington Monthly Magazine has consistently ranked Berea in the top 3 of Liberal Arts Colleges for its success in educating and graduating academically talented, low-income students who become service-oriented leaders in their professions and communities; in 2016 and 2017, the magazine ranked it number 1.
Located where the Bluegrass Region meets the Cumberland Mountains, the town of Berea (pop. 15,000) lies forty miles south of Lexington and is approximately two hours from Cincinnati, Louisville, and Knoxville. More information about Berea College is available at www.berea.edu.
Salary Range: $55,389 - $80,314.
To apply for this position: https://myberea.csod.com/ats/careersite/search.aspx?site=1&c=myberea