Director of Development, Rockwern

Our friends at the Rockwern Academy in Cincinnati, OH are seeking a dynamic Director of Development who will lead the planning and implementation of the school's annual, capital and legacy campaigns.  Successful candidates will be innovative, strategic, and experienced fundraisers, possess strong organizational skills allowing them to oversee multiple concurrent projects, and have demonstrated ability to maintain strong relationships in a warm, nurturing, and tight-knit community.

Rockwern Academy  is a community Jewish day school dedicated to a pluralistic ideology, welcoming students of all backgrounds. With an exceptional student-teacher ratio, the school's mission is to expand minds, celebrate Judaism, nurture community, and commit to building a better world.

Rockwern Academy is seeking a Director of Development who will lead the planning and implementation of the school’s annual, capital, and legacy campaigns. Reporting to the Head of School, the Director of Development will build relationships with multiple donor audiences, staff, volunteers, and lay leaders that will help the school to enhance their philanthropic support. Successful candidates will be innovative, strategic, and experienced fundraisers, possess strong organizational skills allowing them to oversee multiple concurrent projects, and have demonstrated ability to maintain strong relationships in a warm, nurturing, and tight-knit community.

Key Responsibilities:

• Partner with Head of School to develop and implement a comprehensive fundraising strategy
• Develop annual fundraising budget; monitor and track progress in coordination with the accounting team
• Lead the implementation of Rockwern’s Create Your Jewish Legacy program, including cultivation, stewardship, solicitation, and recognition of legacy donors
• Oversee and coordinate the effective solicitation of major donors, assigning solicitations to volunteers and key staff, soliciting a portfolio of donors, and coordinating a major donor recognition event
• Provide leadership to the volunteer teams including volunteer recruitment and training
• Work closely with the Director of Marketing & Communications to write compelling messages and execute direct mail and email solicitations
• Cultivate relationships with current donors, and grow prospective donor relationships and meet with major donors
• Manage the work of a development committee and multiple campaign subcommittees with a focus on planning and solicitation
• Collaborate with the Director of Admissions & Outreach to execute an annual community fundraising event such as Rockwern Alive! and other donor events (major donor recognition and Special Friends Day)
• Partner with the Head of School to identify key funding needs that lend themselves to grant support; identify new grant opportunities; manage writing, reporting, and occasional implementation of grants
• Supervise the Development Administrator and partner with that role to ensure all fundraising operations are handled appropriately
• Build ongoing relationships with key stakeholders in the community, including regular meetings with Rockwern’s development liaison from the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati

Qualifications & Skills:

• Bachelor’s degree with 5+ years’ experience in nonprofit fundraising
• Major gifts and grant writing experience highly preferred
• Ability to create and manage annual campaign budgets
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage and prioritize multiple projects
• Familiarity with Jewish communal fundraising highly preferred
• Comfortable working both independently and in a team
• Excellent donor relations and customer service skills
• Demonstrated interpersonal, communication and writing skills
• Commitment to the mission of Rockwern Academy
• Proficiency with Google Suite, Blackbaud RE-NXT (or similar donor database) and Qgiv
• Flexibility in working occasional nights and weekend hours