Overview
Job Description Summary: The Director of Development (DOD), Major Gifts and Principal Gifts is a key leader within the George Washington University Division of Advancement and the GW Health and Medicine Advancement team, serving as the primary fundraising lead for the Milken Institute School of Public Health (SPH).
The Division of Advancement is responsible for leading the university’s alumni and fundraising efforts and seeks to promote a culture of philanthropy throughout the university community, including alumni, students, parents, faculty, staff, corporations and foundations, patients and other friends. The Director is responsible for driving philanthropic support to advance GWU’s mission of excellence in Health and Medicine, with a focus on public health education, groundbreaking research, and scholarship.
Reporting and Collaboration: Reporting to the Associate Vice President of Advancement, Health and Medicine, this position:
Collaborates closely with and provides direct support to the dean, department heads, leadership, faculty and administrative staff of the School of Public Health and University to create and execute a sustainable program to meet fundraising goals and build affinity in support of philanthropic priorities.
Works closely with prospect research, development/alumni relations, Health & Medicine and Central Advancement colleagues in identifying, cultivating, and tracking major gift prospects.
Key Responsibilities:
Portfolio Management: Responsible for the identification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of up to 125 major gift prospects for SPH.
Strategy & Execution: Develops and executes strategies to identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward gifts up to and exceeding $1 million.
Prospect Engagement: Requires active one-on-one engagement with the portfolio, completing 8-10 monthly prospect visits in pursuit of fundraising goals.
Relationship Building: Plays a critical role in developing meaningful connections with alumni, community members, parents, and friends of the school while developing strategies to move them across the donor continuum to result in stronger engagement and philanthropic support, with a focus on major gifts.
Leadership Support: Leads and collaborates on SPH prospect and donor strategy, prepares briefing materials for university leadership, manages prospect and donor activity in the portfolio, and participates in working group activities within SPH and University Advancement that further University fundraising goals.
Mission Critical Goals: This role is essential for achieving ambitious goals for philanthropic support for faculty support, student support, academic programs, and capital priorities, and will handle sensitive and confidential information.
Mentorship: Provides senior leadership and mentorship to other major gifts officers.
Accountability: Self-management of personal metrics, including overall goal review in attainment, visits, pledge collection, and portfolio moves management.
Stewardship: Stewards assigned donors, including pledge collection and management of endowment funds to ensure appropriate spending and communication to donors.
Position Details:
This is the highest non-management fundraising position at the university.
Performs other related duties as assigned. The omission of specific duties does not preclude the supervisor from assigning duties that are logically related to the position.
About The George Washington University
The George Washington University, an independent academic institution chartered by the Congress of the United States in 1821, dedicates itself to furthering human well-being. The University values a dynamic, student-focused community stimulated by cultural and intellectual diversity and built upon a foundation of integrity, creativity, and openness to the exploration of new ideas.
The George Washington University, centered in the national and international crossroads of Washington, D.C., commits itself to excellence in the creation, dissemination, and application of knowledge.
To promote the process of lifelong learning from both global and integrative perspectives, the University provides a stimulating intellectual environment for its diverse students and faculty. By fostering excellence in teaching, the University offers outstanding learning experiences for full-time and part-time students in undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs in Washington, D.C., the nation, and abroad. As a center for intellectual inquiry and research, the University emphasizes the linkage between basic and applied scholarship, insisting that the practical be grounded in knowledge and theory. The University acts as a catalyst for creativity in the arts, the sciences, and professions by encouraging interaction among its students, faculty, staff, alumni, and the communities it serves.
The George Washington University draws upon the rich array of resources from the National Capital Area to enhance its educational endeavors. In return, the University, through its students, faculty, staff, and alumni, contributes talent and knowledge to improve the quality of life in metropolitan Washington, D.C.
