Arlington, VA

Sr. Manager, Foundation Giving, Communities In Schools - National Office

The Organization – Communities In Schools – National Office

WHO WE ARE

Rooted in community for more than 40 years, Communities In Schools (CIS) strives to bring community resources inside public schools, where they are accessible, coordinated, and accountable. Founder Bill Milliken said, “It’s relationships, not programs, that change children. A great program simply creates the environment for healthy relationships to form between adults and children. Young people thrive when adults care about them on a one-to-one level, and when they also have a sense of belonging to a caring community.”

CIS programs are conducted annually throughout the United States, serving 3,270 schools; 1.8M students with over 15,000 community volunteers and 118 CIS affiliate organizations across the country. Their programs for students include providing needs assessments, support teams with corresponding plans to address academic and non-academic needs, delivery of multiple tiers of support for both students and families, progress monitoring and evaluation and assessment with parents and student support systems.

MISSION AND VALUES

Communities In Schools (CIS) is “all-in” for kids. It is our passion—it is our mission. At the National Office, CIS collaborates with local affiliate organizations to provide resources and create communities of caring adults who work hand-in-hand with educators to make sure young people have the tools they need to stay in school and achieve in life. We are the nation’s largest dropout prevention organization, and we achieve our mission by hiring bright, creative, and innovative team members who demonstrate a passion for what they do.

CIS also holds the following talent beliefs:

  • Every staff member is passionate and committed to the mission.
  • As a National Office, CIS employees have a responsibility to live our values and integrate principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion across the organization and lead by example.
  • In turn, CIS is committed to continuously improving decision making, incentivizing creativity, and building engagement. We do this by building a diverse workforce, fostering a climate of inclusion, and shaping business practices and policies that promote equity.

Position Overview

ABOUT THE ROLE

The Sr. Program Manager, Foundation Giving is an exciting opportunity for a foundation development professional, passionate about our mission, and committed to social justice to serve as a key member of the Advancement team. This virtual role, under the direction of, and in collaboration with the Director of Foundation Giving, will contribute to the strategy and drive implementation. They will cultivate relationships with foundations aligned with the work of CIS to secure new sources of revenue in support of our strategic plan. The candidate is energized by the challenge of growing our foundation revenue and will be responsible for raising $2M to $4M annually.

PRIMARY DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

  • Manage and implement strategies and activities to increase the level of funding from existing foundation donors as well as to shift the scope of funded efforts to align with the organization’s strategic initiatives and minimize restrictions.
  • Identify new potential foundation support, working closely with the Director, Foundation Giving, and senior leadership to drive fundraising strategy.
  • Build and maintain positive relationships with donors and community stakeholders.
  • Work closely with the cross-functional teams to develop and manage consistent messaging to donors and prospects that align with solicitation and donor-specific stewardship communications.
  • Collaborate with others on the Advancement team to identify new donors and build strategies for engaging and encouraging donors to give at higher levels.
  • Ensure accurate and timely record keeping, action entry, reporting, and stewardship.
  • Research the giving interests of foundation funders and stay abreast of philanthropic trends and recent foundation giving.
  • Work closely with the Associate, Foundation Giving to identify new opportunities for funding that align with CIS’ programs through prospect research.
  • Prepare donor materials, including but not limited to proposals, letters of inquiry, grant reports, agreements, emails, presentations, and acknowledgment letters. This includes drafting original copy, editing, and formatting as needed.
  • Lead the planning and execution of meetings with foundation donor staff; provide strategic guidance on research and draft briefings for executive leadership in advance of donor meetings; and prepare senior staff for donor meetings and phone calls.
  • Partner with CIS staff and senior leadership to cultivate relationships with both current and prospective donors and support foundation fundraising on behalf of CIS.
  • Track grant requirements and deadlines as well as contact between CIS and funders.
  • Liaise with finance staff to monitor grant spending.
  • Perform other duties as assigned or needed to advance CIS’ foundation giving portfolio.

ABOUT YOU:

The successful candidate will be adept in developing trusting relationships with foundation program officers and submitting compelling grant applications. The candidate is a strong writer, knowledgeable in foundation sector trends and practices, particularly in youth and education-focused funders.

In addition, the successful candidate will demonstrate a proven track record of identifying and researching prospective funders, cultivating relationships, and securing six-to-seven-figure grants.

SUCCESSFUL CANDIDATES ARE REQUIRED TO HAVE THE FOLLOWING SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS

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, skills, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

Required skills & qualifications:

  • Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent years of experience) in Business or a related field.
  • Minimum six years of foundation relations experience, preferably at a nonprofit education-oriented organization.
  • Demonstrated success managing a seven-figure portfolio of foundation donors and managing relationships with both program officers and internal colleagues to create the conditions for success.
  • Demonstrated success in soliciting and renewing contributions from foundation funders by articulating a compelling case for support through multiple communication tools, such as grant proposals, reports, budget documents, and verbal and visual presentations, among others.
  • Strong organizational and time-management skills to work effectively in a virtual environment to meet deadlines on several projects simultaneously.
  • Experience building and tracking moves in a prospective funder pipeline.
  • Proven track record securing significant foundation grants (preferably national in scope; six to seven figures and above) and stewarding relationships with private foundations.
  • Understanding of, or demonstrated ability to learn quickly, trends in the education sector and the Communities in Schools model of integrated student support. Mastery of the private foundation funding process and norms.
  • Able to demonstrate strong writing abilities and proposal development skills.
  • Proficient in understanding budgets attached to funder proposals and grants.
  • Advanced skills with MS Office Suite, including knowledge of exporting and importing data between systems.
  • Prior experience using Salesforce or other CRM software is a plus.
  • Desire to learn new skills and techniques for professional growth.

TRAVEL

10% travel required.

ABOUT US

CIS staff continue to work in a virtual environment; however, the national office is open and available for staff to use as appropriate.

To ensure the health and safety of staff and job applicants, all interviews will be conducted by phone and/or video conference.

BENEFITS & PERKS

Work that makes a difference—the opportunity to contribute to an important mission!

Competitive and comprehensive compensation and benefits package, including:

  • Five weeks of Paid Time Off
  • Generous 403b Retirement Savings Plan contribution
  • 10 Paid Holidays
  • 90% of employee health care premiums paid by the organization
  • Summer Work Schedule and Winter Break
  • Employer-paid short-term and long-term income replacement programs, and much, much more!

Communities In Schools is committed to a workforce that is representative of the varied communities we are privileged to serve. We provide a work environment that does not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, gender, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, mental or physical disability, genetic information or any other basis protected by applicable law. CIS prohibits harassment of applicants or employees based on any of these protected categories. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

How To Apply

To apply CLICK HERE.  For more information on Communities In Schools please visit our website.

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