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Associate Development Director, Major Gifts

This posting will remain open until filled.

St. Louis Public Radio, an award-winning NPR member station and public service journalism organization, seeks an experienced, driven fundraising professional to identify, cultivate, solicit and steward major and planned gift prospects and donors. We’re looking for someone who thrives in the philanthropic space, who can connect passionate public media supporters to issues, projects and news coverage that matters to them and the communities that STLPR serves. Our next Associate Development Director will be an accomplished face-to-face fundraiser with a demonstrated ability to present the strategic direction of STLPR and the importance of the organization as a vital community resource.

A great candidate for this position would exhibit high levels of cultural competency and emotional intelligence. They would have a history of developing warm, responsive relationships with donors, coworkers and other stakeholders, which means they excel at communications of all kinds.

If you are a skilled fundraiser with a passion for building community, here’s your chance to excel as part of a team dedicated to building and maintaining support for exceptional local journalism.

Key Responsibilities

  • Manage a portfolio of 100-150 individual and foundation major and planned gift prospects and donors within moves management protocols;
  • Demonstrate inclusive communication skills and approaches to form positive professional relationships with donors, community members, coworkers and other stakeholders;
  • Develop ongoing strategies, timelines, objectives and metrics for the assigned portfolio of prospects/donors with a focus on annual and long-term objectives and priorities in collaboration with development and station leadership;
  • Balance the responsibility of being a leader and supervisor with the responsibility of serving as a team member, depending on the situation;
  • Manage annual giving programs for $1,200+ donors in the Cornerstone Society, and support the expansion of planned giving and the Legacy Society;
  • Strategize specific steps that lead to the solicitation of major gifts: participate in high-level prospecting, schedule calls, messages and meetings, orchestrate activities for the CEO in cooperation with the development director, participate in ask/solicitation visits when warranted and make or follow-up on presentations to close gifts;
  • Identify new prospects for associated giving levels, using appropriate database and wealth research to cultivate donors and prospects for increased support;
  • Develop well-conceived and well-written fundraising proposals, case statements, letters, emails and other communications for donors and prospects, both independently and with development and station leaders;
  • Coordinate major gifts fundraising efforts with fundraising professionals at UMSL and UM System, including University Advancement and planned giving, as needed;
  • Increase the number of major and planned giving donors and the dollars raised from donors by budgeted amounts;
  • Accurately record within donor management software all contacts with donors/prospects; including solicitation strategies, cultivation visits, etc.;
  • Work closely with the development team to develop strategies, policies and procedures for: donor stewardship and recognition including physical and virtual donor walls, donor events, and other stewardship and cultivation activities;
  • Demonstrate passion for the importance, urgency, exclusivity and power of public media to improve lives as well as a desire to work in a trusted organization that serves the educational, cultural and informational needs of the community;
  • Other duties as needed and/or assigned.

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree or an equivalent combination of education and experience;
  • Five years in development, prospect management, donor cultivation, solicitation or related field;
  • Excellent verbal/written communication, interpersonal, presentation and donor relationship skills;
  • Demonstrated ability in setting and reaching fundraising goals and individual/department deadlines;
  • Knowledge of planned giving.

Preferred Qualifications

  • Diverse experiences in major gift, campaign fundraising, planned giving and/or proposal writing;
  • Demonstrated ability to solicit $10,000+ annual gifts and $100,000+ campaign gifts; 
  • Experience managing, developing and supporting staff; 
  • Experience managing $1,000+ annual giving clubs;
  • Familiarity with community-centered fundraising practices;
  • Ability to quickly become proficient in donor software and other industry-related software;
  • Knowledge of public media. 

Supervision Received

The Associate Development Director, Major Gifts, reports directly to the Development Director.

Supervision Exercised

This position supervises the Development Officer, Major Gifts, position and provides guidance to other development staff members and interns when appropriate.

Salary Range

$75,000 — $95,000 annually

Other Information

St. Louis Public Radio is a service of the University of Missouri-St. Louis (UMSL), and through UMSL offers comprehensive benefits including health, dental and vision insurance, retirement and wellness programs through the University of Missouri System Total Rewards program. University employees receive discounts at the College of Optometry's Center for Eye Care, discounted passes for the Metrolink and UM System-sponsored programs. Additionally, UMSL staff and their dependents enjoy discounted tuition, and employees have access to a wide array of professional development opportunities.

Application Instructions

To apply for this position, visit the UMSL Careers site (Job ID: 51294). Include with your application a resume and a cover letter.

Email STLPR chief of staff Jess Luther if you have questions about this position or about applying for the job through the UMSL Careers portal.