Alumni Engagement Associate Vice President Or Senior Director

Overview

Since its founding in 1888, Utah State University has evolved from a small-town college tucked away in the northern Utah mountains to a thriving Carnegie-recognized R1 research university. Known throughout the world for its intellectual and technological leadership, Utah State enriches the student experience through an array of academic and social opportunities. Just minutes from two mountain ranges and within a half-day's drive of six national parks, including Yellowstone and Arches, the university provides big-school opportunities with a small-school feel, all for a great value.

Reflecting the tremendous growth experienced over recent years, Utah State has nearly 175,00 living alumni and welcomes more than 7,000 new alumni each year. The Office of Alumni Engagement is housed in the USU Alumni Center, a new facility designed to serve as a focal point for re-engaging and bringing alumni back to campus. The Alumni Engagement Associate Vice President or Senior Director will report to the Vice President for Advancement and supervise the professional alumni staff.

The Alumni Engagement Associate Vice President (AVP) or Senior Director (SR Dir) plans and implements a comprehensive and inclusive program that strategically engages alumni and creates rewarding engagement experiences that are designed to foster lifelong connections to Utah State University. The AVP/SR Dir leads and sets goals and priorities for department staff and is a member of the Advancement leadership team. By developing programming that offers alumni diverse opportunities for engagement, the AVP/SR Dir promotes a comprehensive understanding of the University's mission, goals and priorities. Working collaboratively with both internal and external stakeholders, the AVP/SR Dir provides oversight and executive direction to the Alumni Association Advisory Board and alumni chapters. Extensive travel required. This position will be hired at either the Associate Vice President or Senior Director level based upon qualifications listed below and duties assigned.

Responsibilities

Strategic Planning and Coordination

• Provides strategic direction and leadership to Utah State University's alumni programs by creating rewarding engagement experiences with alumni, students, university leadership, faculty and staff. Expands programming, services and benefits that align with the interests and needs of a diverse alumni network.

• Develops and implements a plan to build an endowment to support alumni activities and generates sponsorships for events and activities.

• Manages the alumni budget to ensure ROI and effective allocation of resources.

Board and Volunteer Engagement

• Supports the Alumni Association Advisory Board by developing and communicating a vision and strategic direction that empowers board members to be university ambassadors, advocates and investors.

• Ensures effective staff and volunteer leadership by supporting alumni chapters and affinity groups through training and the appropriate allocation of support, materials and financial resources.

Goal Setting and Achievement

• Establishes strategic goals and priorities for alumni programming and events that inspire alumni to be engaged and give philanthropically to Utah State. Evaluates and strengthens existing programming, creating and implementing new initiatives that enhance alumni connections to each other and the university.

• Develops, analyzes and communicates metrics for the alumni team to gauge alumni officer and department effectiveness.

Alumni Engagement and Strategic Initiatives

• Ensures alumni events and initiatives create a lifetime value proposition with Utah State constituents.

• Executes effective alumni event strategy and analysis to ensure exceptional engagement experiences.

Collaboration and Leadership

• Collaborates with the marketing and communications department to share donor and alumni stories, generate interest in university programs, educate alumni on engagement opportunities, and deepen alumni interactions with Utah State through print and electronic communications.

• Partners with Utah State leadership, campus leaders, athletics and advancement staff to plan and execute events, activities and initiatives that provide gratifying engagement experiences and inspire giving. Collaborate with Advancement Services to provide post-event analysis to ensure expected outcomes are met.

• Provides support and leadership to the alumni programs of Utah State's regional campuses. Ensures these programs are coordinated by working collaboratively to achieve university alumni goals.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications:

• This position will be hired at either the Associate Vice President or Senior Director level based upon qualifications and duties assigned:

• For Senior Director (Development Officer SR):

• Bachelor's degree plus five years of experience OR an equivalent combination of education and experience is required.

• For Associate Vice President (Advancement - AVP):

• Bachelor's degree plus seven years of experience working as a university alumni office professional OR an equivalent combination of education and experience is required.

• For Both Positions:

• Comprehensive knowledge and understanding of current theory and practice in the alumni relations and engagement field.

• Proven ability to develop and execute a comprehensive alumni programming, communications and engagement strategy.

• Demonstrated track record of success in leading, mentoring and inspiring staff to achieve goals and fostering an attitude of staff responsiveness.

• Possess reasonable experience with fundraising techniques, including annual fund activities, organizational campaigns and funding initiatives.

• Excellent communication, presentation and interpersonal/relationship-building skills.

• Superior skills in leadership, operations management, board management and fiscal management.

Preferred Qualifications:

• An advanced academic degree.

• 10+ years of experience working as a university alumni office professional with progressive promotion to increased responsibilities.

• Significant achievement leading an alumni association as evidenced by CASE awards or other professional recognition.

• A proven track record of fundraising for alumni endowments and sponsorships.

Required Documents

Along with the online application, please attach:

Resume/CV to be uploaded at the beginning of your application in the Candidate Profile under "Resume/CV" Cover letter to be typed/pasted at the end of your application

Document size may not exceed 10 MB.

Advertised Salary

Commensurate with experience, plus excellent benefits

ADA

Employees work indoors and are protected from weather and/or contaminants, but not, necessarily, occasional temperature changes. The employee is regularly required to sit and often uses repetitive hand motions.

College/Department Highlights

The Division of Advancement is a welcoming office where teamwork and inclusiveness are highly valued. Advancement staff are engaged in the meaningful work of securing private financial resources to fuel Utah State University's mission by creating gratifying gift and engagement experiences for USU's generous and passionate alumni and friends. Comprising the division are the office of the Vice President, the USU Foundation & Board, Advancement Services, the Alumni Association (Alumni Engagement), Gift Planning, Corporations and Foundations, Strategic Communications, Stewardship, the Annual Fund and ACE (Alumni Center for Engagement). Furthermore, the division coordinates all fundraising efforts across campus, including colleges, various programs, extension campuses, and USU Athletics. Through the collaboration of these units, the Division of Advancement is able to achieve significant annual fundraising goals by inspiring stakeholders to invest their time and resources in Utah State University.

University Highlights

Founded in 1888, Utah State University is Utah's premier land-grant, public service university, with a strong commitment to excellence, access, and inclusion, empowering people to lead successful lives of involvement, innovation, and impact. Utah State provides high-quality education to 27,500-plus students locations throughout the state, including at three residential campuses, eight statewide campuses, and 23 education centers. USU Online educates students from all 50 states and 55 countries. For over 25 years, USU Extension has served and engaged Utahns in all of Utah's counties. As an R1 research institution, Utah State is dedicated to advancing knowledge through research and scholarly activities, providing a high-quality undergraduate and graduate education at an affordable price.

Utah State is committed to cultivating a community of inclusive excellence where all perspectives, values, cultures, and identities are acknowledged, welcomed, and valued. We seek to recruit, hire, and retain people from all walks of life who will champion excellence in education, research, discovery, outreach, and service. We believe that promoting a strong sense of community and belonging empowers and engages all members of USU to thrive and be successful. Forbes recognized our commitment to employees when they named Utah State the best employer in Utah in 2023. Learn more about USU.

The university provides a Dual Career Assistance Program to support careers for partners who are also seeking employment. Additionally, USU is committed to providing access and reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities. To request a reasonable accommodation for a disability, contact the university's ADA Coordinator in the Office of Human Resources at (435) 797-0122 or hr@usu.edu.

About the Region

U.S. News and World Report ranked Utah first for its strong economy, fiscal stability, education, and health care. Outstanding outdoor recreational opportunities abound throughout the state, including five national parks, 43 state parks and recreation areas, and 15 alpine ski resorts. The home of USU's main campus, Logan, is a city of 54,000-plus people in a picturesque mountain valley 80 miles north of Salt Lake City. The Logan metro area claimed the top spot in the Milken Institute's 2022 ranking for best-performing small cities in the nation.

updated 04/2024

Notice of Non-discrimination

In its programs and activities, including in admissions and employment, Utah State University does not discriminate or tolerate discrimination, including harassment, based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, status as a protected veteran, or any other status protected by University policy, Title IX, or any other federal, state, or local law.

The following individuals have been designated to handle inquiries regarding the application of Title IX and its implementing regulations and/or USU's non-discrimination policies:

Executive Director of the Office of Equity Matthew Pinner, discrimination@usu.edu, Distance Education Rm. 401, 435-797-1266

Title IX Coordinator Cody Carmichael, titleix@usu.edu, Distance Education Rm. 404, 435-797-1266

Mailing address: 5100 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322

For further information regarding non-discrimination, please visit https://equity.usu.edu/, or contact:

U.S. Department of Education, Office of Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 800-421-3481, OCR@ed.gov

• updated 09/2023