What are the responsibilities and job description for the Institutional Giving Manager position at Conservatory Lab Charter School?
The Conservatory Lab Foundation seeks an Institutional Giving Manager.
About the Conservatory Lab Foundation:
The Conservatory Lab Foundation (the Foundation) is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides philanthropic support, and holds assets on behalf of the Conservatory Lab Charter School (Conservatory Lab), where every student receives daily orchestral musical instruction. The Foundation supports the national dissemination of Conservatory Lab’s educational model, and provides public relations, event logistics, and marketing support to the School.
About Conservatory Lab Charter School
Founded in 1999, Conservatory Lab currently enrolls approximately 450 K-8 students. Its mission is to empower a diverse range of children as scholars, artists, and leaders through a unique and rigorous academic and music education. Conservatory Lab enriches the larger community through performance, service, and collaboration. As a laboratory school, Conservatory Lab disseminates innovative educational approaches that will positively impact children in other schools and programs.
With a flagship Upper Campus opened on Dorchester’s Columbia Road in 2020 and a Lower Campus in the process of a comprehensive renovation and expansion, this is an exciting time for Conservatory Lab. Where total enrollment in Boston Public Schools is declining, Conservatory Lab maintains a lengthy waitlist, with strong senior leadership and enviable teacher retention.
In 2023, the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) recognized Conservatory Lab’s strong academic results through the 2023 designation as a “School of Recognition.” In 2024, DESE awarded Conservatory Lab a four-year $1million grant to expand its after-school program. Last year, donations to the annual fund increased by 34%, and we are well on our way toward our goal to grow the annual fund by 20% this year.
In addition to completing efforts underway to increase the annual fund from $1 million to $2 million, and completing a $5.5 million capital campaign for the Lower Campus renovation, the Foundation seeks to deepen its ties to the adjacent Dorchester neighborhoods of Bowdoin/Geneva, Grove Hall and Upham’s Corner, and to raise awareness of Conservatory Lab’s transformative mission with Greater Boston’s cultural, academic, business, philanthropic, and political centers of influence. The Foundation team also collaborates in maintaining a consistent visual brand for the School’s on-line and print materials, and is actively building an alumni association.
About the Institutional Giving Manager position:
Reporting to the, and in partnership with the Foundation’s Executive Director, the Institutional Giving Manager (the Manager) is responsible for approximately two-thirds of the Annual Fund. The Manager maintains contact with existing Institutional Donors, including sending regular updates and scheduling visits to Conservatory Lab as appropriate. They manage the calendar of proposal and report deadlines; research and prepare briefings on prospective new donors; make initial contact with new Institutional Donors; and partner on school tours with Institutional donors and prospects.
The position requires someone with a keen sense of judgment, a collaborative spirit, and the ability to work under carefully driven deadlines and expectations. The Manager is part of a four-person Foundation team which inevitably means cross-training and supporting other members of the team when needed.
The Institutional Giving Manager is responsible for:
Strategy:
The Foundation maintains a Tracker of its donors and prospects. The Manager will annually collaborate with the Executive Director on establishing a customized stewardship path for each Institutional entry on the Tracker, including:
Identifying required deadlines for proposals and reports.
Establishing additional School events of interest to each donor.
Drafting and, following edits, submitting required proposals and reports.
Building and maintaining a relationship with each donor that ideally culminates in an annual visit to tour the School
Attend board, school, and other meetings as needed.
Build relationships with School administrators and teachers to identify needs, creatively packaging these to existing and emerging donors, and to best understand the texture and details of School programming.
Gift Stewardship and solicitation:
Working in collaboration with the Development Assistant, the Manager will:
Ensure that all donors in the Institutional portfolio receive appropriate acknowledgement letters and correspondence.
Distribute gift reports and donor thank you call sheets to the Executive Director and appropriate Board members.
Process gifts in accordance with gift policies and procedures.
Support other donor recognition and stewardship efforts, including capital campaign acknowledgments.
Ensure that gifts of all types are processed and receipts are issued which includes direct processing of checks, and coordination with finance on other kinds of gift processing.
File gift agreements, correspondence, and other information for major donors and funders.
Communications & Marketing:
The Manager will support the Development Assistant in marketing and social media by providing content based on interactions with donors and School staff by:
Writing social media and blog posts, when asked,
Ghost-writing content on behalf of School Staff
Collaborating with the Foundation team on press releases, as needed
Salary : $55,000 - $58,000
