Director of Development

Director of Development

Mission Statement:  

The Growing Up Green Charter School (GUGCS) supports children to be conscious, contributing members of their community through a rigorous, anti-racist, anti-bias, curriculum and an engaging green culture. Graduates of GUGCS will be prepared to attend high-performing schools where their interdisciplinary academic foundation, knowledge of sustainability, and strong sense of self sets them apart as leaders and social justice advocates of the future. Find out more about GUGCS!

Job Description Overview: 

The Director of Development (DOD) is a high-performing fundraiser who is eager to build, grow, and drive measurable impact; responsible for developing, managing, and executing GUGCS’s annual development plan. The ideal candidate will help scale fundraising, deepen donor relationships, and build a development operation at GUGCS. This is an opportunity for a dynamic hands-on leader - an entrepreneurial fundraiser - who wants meaningful ownership and the chance to increase the impact that GUGCS makes in the communities that we serve.  The DOD will have a clear grasp of all core components of development: individual giving, including major gifts, stewardship, and annual giving campaigns (direct mail and digital); institutional foundations and grant writing; and corporate partnerships and sponsorships. This role requires experience with development operations, including CRM management and budget building. The DOD will work closely with the Director of Family Engagement & Communications, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Chief Operating Officer (COO) and interface frequently with GUGCS donors, teachers, staff, and community, and will be the lead partner in promoting an organizational culture of philanthropy.  The DOD will join the leadership team, reporting to our Founder and Executive Director and the COO and bring a passion for our mission paired with a high-level of expertise and strategic thinking to generate revenue that will support achievement of our long-term growth goals 

Responsibilities: 

Leadership and Development Strategy

• Partner with the Director of Family Engagement & Communications to engage with GUGCS staff, faculty, donors, alumni, and other community members to truly understand our mission, vision, and culture to strengthen development communications
• Represent development needs to the Leadership Team, ensuring organizational strategy is aligned with development strategy
• Execute, iterate, and update the existing development plan to accomplish organizational goals as they evolve, incorporating new ideas, industry best practices, and data-driven analysis
• Ensure a robust gift pipeline big enough to hit annual revenue goals by actively managing prospective and current individual, business, and foundation donors 
• Cultivate relationships with the Board of Trustees and lead the board’s fundraising efforts
• Contribute positively to Growing Up Green’s culture and lead with GUGCS’s values: kindness, collaboration, courage, and social justice

Individual Giving and Donor Relations

• Research and design moves management plans for major individual donors and project-manage the ED’s fundraising work as it relates to major donors and funders
• Design and execute annual appeals, with support from the Director of Family Engagement & Communications 
• Utilize existing data to create, launch, and manage a recurring giving program
• Ensure the day-to-day stewardship and retention of new and returning donors, including managing a portfolio of high-capacity donors
• Collaborate with the ED to develop long-term strategies for GUGCS’s annual Read-A-Thon
• Plan and execute at least one large annual fundraising event that includes fundraising goals and innovative strategies to achieve them
• Ensure post-fundraising event follow-up including thank you letters, surveys, tracking of responses, integration of feedback, and overall acknowledgement and stewardship of fundraisers and donors
• Manage the execution of Growing Up Green’s donor stewardship plan and update it annually with new and meaningful ways to connect donors and foster greater sense of community

 Foundation and Corporate Giving 

• Launch a structured corporate partners program that deepens the relationship between GUGCS and local businesses and provides a mutually beneficial partnership'
• Strategically research and pursue prospective foundation funders. Identify top prospects and outreach, relationship build, and cultivate 
• Lead and project manage all grant opportunities including working with GUGCS staff to complete necessary information for applications, grant writing, and the reporting schedule

Development Operations and Revenue Tracking 

• Establish and monitor annual and long-term revenue goals and budgets
• Ensure excellent donor stewardship and follow-up
• Maintain all donor and prospect information utilizing Network for Good (GUGCS’s CRM)
• Design and update a regular progress-to-goal report and development dashboard for the ED and Board of Trustees
• Execute high-quality gift processing and revenue tracking, to ensure accurate and thorough documentation of all development activities
• Ensure integrity and accuracy in all records and reports in Network for Good

About you:

To be successful in this role, you need to be:

• A dynamic professional who will represent GUGCS’s work with enthusiasm and authenticity
• A highly proactive and resourceful individual, comfortable with rolling up your sleeves and diving into the work
• A strong relationship builder with an executive presence and excellent communication skills that operates with urgency and follow-through 
• A naturally persistent and resilient individual who is excited to strategize and also to implement and execute those strategies
• A natural people person who appreciates that everyone has an important story to tell
• A practiced public speaker who can think on your feet
• A stickler for details, quality, is data-driven and organized 
• A creative thinker willing to test out new ideas
• A strong self-motivator

Qualifications: 

• 3-8 years of experience in nonprofit development, fundraising, partnerships, or sales
• A minimum of 2 years of nonprofit leadership experience
• An exceptional communicator and networker
• Dedication to data and systems and ready to utilize Growing Up Green’s systems to project manage all development work for the organization
• Someone who values diversity and is amenable to working alongside allies to promote kindness, collaboration, courage, and social justice 
• Demonstrated success closing gifts, sponsorships, partnerships, donors, and running campaigns
• Demonstrable experience and success as a fundraising generalist, with hands-on practice at major gifts, annual giving, online giving campaigns, peer-to-peer fundraising, institutional giving/grant writing, corporate partnership building, and special events
• Experience managing and improving development operations, ranging from CRM management to budget monitoring to gift processing
• Enthusiasm to propose fresh ideas without prompting by leadership, openness to feedback on those ideas, and a persistence to bring those ideas to life
• A passion for doing transformative work with exceptional people while not taking yourself too seriously
• A “teamwork” mindset and the ability to work cooperatively and effectively with others to set goals, resolve problems, and make decisions that enhance organizational effectiveness
• Experience with charter schools - preferred, but not required

Benefits:

• Salary: $100,000 - $110,000 commensurate with experience + Performance Based Stipend of up to 15% of base salary
• Hybrid role: 4 days in the schools and one day remote
• Health and Wellness: health insurance; dental insurance; vision insurance; life insurance; short-term disability; long-term disability; FSA account; HSA account; paid parental leave; health and wellness community events
• Vacation and Time Off: 30 paid time off days, federal and school holidays, as well as a compressed summer schedule 
• Financial and Retirement: 401(k) with company matching 2% +, we offer longevity benefits that include bonuses, and annual increases based on years of service at GUGCS

Education and Requirements:

• Bachelor’s Degree required
• At least two years of leadership experience
• NYC DOE/Fingerprinting & background clearance (required prior to employment)