Director of Leadership Annual Giving

REPORTS TO: Associate Vice President for Leadership and Institutional Giving

LOCATION : 1025 E. South River Street – Appleton, WI

About Us

The Office of University Advancement advances and amplifies the mission, purposes, and goals of Lawrence University through fundraising and partnerships, strategic communications, volunteer leadership support, and alumni and community engagement.

Primary Objective

The Director of Leadership Annual Giving (Director) is a senior member of the Advancement team and plays a vital role in advancing the Leadership Annual Giving program and contributing to Lawrence University’s fundraising success. The Director manages a team of frontline fundraisers and creates and executes a strategic plan to qualify, cultivate, solicit, and steward donors. The Director manages a portfolio of individual donors and collaborates with colleagues to build the major and planned gift pipelines.

Duties

• Responsible for the successful management of leadership annual giving fundraisers and an individual donor portfolio to support the university’s priorities with a focus on annual giving campaigns, including Reunion giving, Crowdfund campaigns, Lawrence Fund initiatives, and similar efforts.
• Sustains and strengthens leadership annual giving ($1,000-$25,000/year range) to the Lawrence Fund through developing and implementing a comprehensive fundraising plan focused on the Founders Club level and above. Devises effective strategies and tracking mechanisms to encourage current members to sustain and increase their leadership annual support and to enlist new members. Work with Advancement staff to ensure that appropriate cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship efforts are designed and implemented.
• Collaborates with the Director of Advancement Communications, who is responsible for devising annual giving communication and program strategies.
• This is an external-facing fundraising position that involves travel within the Midwest region to meet with prospects, donors, and volunteers with a goal of 90 meetings per year. Some limited national travel may be required.
• Conducts and oversees regular portfolio and gift strategy check-ins/progress updates.
• Oversees assigned alumni giving programs involving peer solicitation (e.g., Reunion giving).
• Supervises, trains, supports, and professionally develops members of the Leadership Annual Giving team.
• Participates in professional forums, conferences, associations, and platforms as appropriate and shares pertinent information, trends, concepts, and technologies learned with other Advancement colleagues.
• Ensures collaboratively (with Advancement Services team) efficient and accurate recording, accounting, acknowledgement, and execution of gifts received by the university.
• Performs other duties as assigned.
  
  

Reporting And Supervisory Relationships

Reports to the Associate Vice President for Leadership and Institutional Giving. Works with all members of our diverse campus community: the development, alumni and community engagement, communications, and the president’s offices, as well as alumni, parents, students, faculty, and friends of the university. Supervises a staff of gift officers and works closely with the broader Advancement team to advance the mission and vision of Lawrence.

Required

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE REQUIRED :

• Bachelor’s degree.
• Prefer three to five years of experience in professional fundraising; preferably in annual giving and/or higher education.
• Demonstrated success with portfolio and relationship management, including individual prospects and volunteers.
• Demonstrated success with qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of gifts.
• Demonstrated ability to manage staff and volunteers effectively; prefer previous management experience.
• Familiarity with philanthropic strategies, fundraising technologies, and prospect research tools.
• Excellent writing, organizational, oral communication, and interpersonal skills are essential with exceptional attention to detail and an enthusiasm for hard work.
• Creativity, flexibility, originality, sense of humor, and an entrepreneurial spirit.
• Knowledge and understanding of current issues in higher education.
• Proficient computer skills including MS Word, Excel, Power Point, and database applications.
• Must have successful completion of criminal record, driving record, and reference checks.
• Must possess a valid Driver’s License and complete campus safe driving training session before driving any university owned or rented vehicles.
  
  

Additional Requirements

This position requires travel and some evening, overnight, and weekend hours; travel will be focused on the state and within the Midwest region, although some national travel may be required.

WHY LAWRENCE ?

Join a vibrant team committed to advancing a liberal arts education and fostering a sense of belonging for all members of the Lawrence community. Please submit applications with a cover letter via https://lawrence.peopleadmin.com by April 15, 2025, for best consideration.