Director of Development

Description

DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT The Virginia Center for the Creative Arts (VCCA) seeks an experienced and capable fundraising professional to lead its development efforts, reporting to the Executive Director. VCCA is a non-profit multi-disciplinary artists residency program of international scope with locations in beautiful Amherst County,Virginia, 150 miles southwest of Washington, D.C., and in Auvillar, an historic village in Southwest France.  VCCA provides residential fellowships of two weeks to two months for highly accomplished artists to work free from the distractions of day-to-day life. Artists are provided private studios, private bedrooms and three prepared meals a day in the company of 24 other artists. Each year approximately 500 artists, or Fellows, come toVCCA's two locations from 40 U.S. states and 15 other countries. They are accepted through a merit-based peer review process.  VCCA has an annual institutional budget of approximately $1.3 million. Position Overview The Director of Development (DoD) leads and manages fundraising efforts to develop and grow relationships with donors and funders at all levels, particularly focused on building a robust Annual Giving program with a major gift emphasis, and producing a financially successful annual fundraising event. The DoD reports to VCCA’s Executive Director and is supported by a Development & Programs Associate (DPA), and a part-time grant writer.  The DoD may work remotely but spends at least one day each week at the Amherst location to be familiar with the program, supervise and mentor development staff and work with other VCCA team members.  

Job Duties

• Executing twice-yearly AnnualGiving appeals, including personalized solicitation strategies, direct mail, on-line giving, and social media, working with Executive Director, Director of Communications, and other staff to develop messaging and materials (FY20 AG goal $410,000);
• Stewarding an assigned pool of leadership donors;
• Implementing and refining a structure of donor benefits designed to bring individuals closer to VCCA’smission;
• Teaming with the Executive Director in actively in planning and implementation of VCCA’s proposed capital campaign;
• Creating and managing plans for Board members, Executive Director, other staff, and key volunteers to engage current donors and to identify and cultivate new prospects;
• Work with leadership volunteers and the Executive Director to produce a compelling and visible signature annual fundraiser to meet the event’s financial goal (FY20 event goal $115,000);
• Refine and execute VCCA’s Annual Development Plan, including specific objectives for the cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of donors;
• Manage, with the support of vendors, consultants and other VCCA staff, the conversion of VCCA donor database from FileMaker to eTapestry.
• Direct the DPA in maintaining, updating and safeguarding records, in acknowledging all contributed funds, and in tracking fundraising performance against annual goals;
• With the support of the DPA, analyze donor and fundraising data and use in managing fundraising strategies and in acting on trends in philanthropy; and
• Provide staff support to the Executive Director and the Development Committee of the Board, offering timely information and background data to inform strategic decision-making and facilitating their participation in VCCA’s fundraising efforts.
• With Executive Director and grant-writer, develop plan for ongoing grant application process to fund strategic initiatives and projects for VCCA.

Skills Required

• 5 to 7 years of fundraising experience, preferably with arts-relatedorganizations;
• Annual Fund experience, with some exposure to major gifts fundraising
• Superior written and verbal communicationsskills
• Numeracy; understanding of establishing fundraising targets and reporting on financial performance
• Demonstrated capability in accessing and analyzing data using fundraising software
• Ability to lead and work collaboratively as part of a team
• Strategic thinker, planner andimplementer;
• Determined, self-motivated andgoal-oriented with the ability to handle the responsibility of working remotely

Work Schedule

Full-time, with some evening and weekend hours for scheduled events

Additional Info

Supervisory Responsibilities: supervises Development and Programs Associate and three-day/week grantwriter Environment:Primarily indoor, office environment, although some work in outdoor environment in varying types of weather may be required. Travel: travel required to meet with VCCA donors where they live and to attend board meetings both in and out of state. Other - Valid driver's license and vehicle is required; work-related mileage is reimbursed. Deadline for Submission: Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position has been filled.