Development & Events Specialist

Seattle, WA, United States

Villa Academy seeks a full-time Development & Events Specialist to join its team beginning July 1, 2024. This role plays a pivotal part in advancing the school’s mission by planning and implementing fundraising initiatives and campaigns, as well as planning, organizing, and executing development events. This is a twelve-month, non-exempt position that follows the academic calendar, reporting to the Director of Institutional Advancement.

The ideal candidate is a leader with great creativity, positive energy, and cultural humility, as well as keen detail management and communication skills. They are a self-starter capable of forecasting the myriad needs of events and will enjoy building relationships across constituent groups. They are detail-oriented with a passion for community engagement and proven track record in cultivating donor relationships. They will have a strong working knowledge of event planning, coordinating and production, as well as program development. This candidate will also have exceptional data management and editing skills, flexibility.

ESSENTIAL RESPONSIBILITIES:

Provide event management for a portfolio of recurring and one-time school, donor, parent, community-member, and alumni events, including but not limited to: our annual spring fundraising event, Opening Week activities, Grandparents & Special Friends Day, reunions, parent socials, and additional community events throughout the year.

Partner with the Director of Institutional Advancement (DIA) to intentionally cultivate and steward relationships with individual donors for donations and gifts-in-kind throughout the year.

Work closely with the DIA to develop and execute comprehensive fundraising strategies to achieve annual fundraising goals.

Execute a multi-pronged Annual Fund campaign, including segmented direct mail, online giving, scripts for fund ambassadors, copy for other collateral as needed, tracking of donations, and initiatives to encourage participation.

Provide high-level production support for the school’s signature events to cultivate new donors, steward existing donors, engage alumni, actively fundraise, and increase support for Villa Academy’s mission and programs.

Support and collaborate with colleagues and campus partners to identify event vision, goals, communication needs, roles and responsibilities, timelines, program outlines, and the run-of-show for respective events.

Develop event messaging, such as save-the-dates, invitations, event communication content, event program outlines, speaker briefs, scripts, and post-event thank you notes.

Develop accurate project timelines and budgets.

Coordinate with on- and off-campus partners to manage venue contacts, catering partners, entertainment, parking, A/V, and other event logistics.

Collaborate with the DIA and the Director of Enrollment Management on video storytelling projects.

Remain current with industry trends to inform event design and continually improve event program effectiveness.

Lead event stakeholders in formal and informal event debriefs.

Update and maintain the development database (Raiser’s Edge) in an accurate and timely fashion for all gifts, contributions, and donor records.

Utilize the database to generate donor reports, issue tax receipts, and generate year-end tax statements for all donors.

Oversee and track pledge reminders.

Produce detailed queries, reports, exports, donor lists, and mail merges for all fundraising campaigns and development events.

Partner with the Business Office to reconcile vendor invoices.

Commit to the mission, vision, and values of Villa Academy.

QUALIFICATIONS:

A Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Marketing, Communications, Nonprofit Management, or a related field.

3+ years of experience in development, fundraising, or event planning, preferably within a nonprofit organization.

Proven track record of successful event management and/or fundraising campaigns.

Strong project management skills with the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously and meet deadlines.

Proficiency with donor management software, such as Raiser’s Edge, preferred.

Proficiency using Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets.

Exceptional interpersonal skills with the ability to build and maintain relationships with all school constituencies, including donors, faculty, staff, families, and the community.

A strong work ethic and high level of integrity, as well as creativity, vision, and imagination.

Availability to work flexible hours, including some evenings and weekends.

A current Washington state driver’s license and applicable Washington state automobile insurance.

Positive energy and enthusiasm for working in a Preschool through Eighth Grade, faith-based independent school.

A commitment to ongoing professional growth, curiosity, cultural humility, and antiracism, as well as an understanding of its critical role in academic excellence and student growth.

SALARY RANGE AND BENEFITS:

Anticipated salary ranges between $64,000 – 68,000/year, dependent upon education and experience . Villa Academy offers a robust benefits package for full-time employees, including employer-paid medical, dental, vision, and life insurance, 401(k) retirement plan with employer contributions, Flexible Spending Accounts, free parking, potential for graduate school tuition reimbursement, paid time off, and professional development opportunities.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE:

Please provide, via email to [email protected] , items listed below (preferably in one PDF document):

A cover letter detailing interest in and readiness for the role, addressed to Dr. Liz Willis, Head of School.

A current resume including relevant experience and three professional references.

Villa Academy is an equal opportunity employer and complies with all federal rules and regulations. Villa Academy does not discriminate in admission, access, treatment, or employment on the basis of race, color, religion, gender identity, gender presentation, sex, sexual orientation, creed, age, national origin, marital status or ability.

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