Development Assistant For Institutional Advancement

Bennington College invites applications for a Development Assistant to join a growing and reinvigorated advancement team. This position will provide general administrative support to the Office of Institutional Advancement. As a key partner on the Office of Institutional Advancement team, this position will work closely with program directors to support alumni and donor relationships and will be responsible for engaging and collaborating with colleagues on all facets of advancement work. Of critical importance is the ability to engage with the relevant stakeholders in a warm, professional, timely and attentive manner.

Reporting to the Special Assistant to the VP and Advancement Office Manager, the Development Assistant will compile, assimilate, and proofread and draft correspondences to support program directors with alumni and donor relations. The position will assist the frontline major and leadership gift officers in all aspects of their work including having direct interaction with alumni and donors as necessary, and determining the nature/urgency of requests and facilitating expedient resolutions. Other responsibilities include fulfilling donor requests, entering reports and tasks into the database, processing administrative expenses, and generating regular reporting to provide analytical support to the team. Other duties that support the needs of the Office of Institutional Advancement, as assigned.

The successful candidate will possess strong communication skills, attention to detail and a passion for engaging and supporting alumni and family communities. Candidates must possess a deep commitment to instilling best practices and fostering a culture that reflects Advancement's and Bennington College's values.

Bennington serves a diverse student population inclusive of members of ethnically/racially minoritized, international, LGBTQIA+, and disability communities as well as diverse gender identities, socioeconomic backgrounds, religions, and political beliefs. Our staff and faculty also reflect diverse and intersecting backgrounds and identities. All employees are expected to be respectful and responsive to these differences in the service of building community that promotes student and employee success and community cohesiveness. Each individual (faculty, staff and students) will be accountable for upholding these values. The College's approach to pluralism and inclusivity-both as fields of inquiry and practice-is to prioritize flexible thought, and to invite the examination of access, value, power, and privilege through its institutional policies and areas of study. We encourage applicants from diverse realms of interest, backgrounds, experience, and accomplishment to apply.

General Responsibilities

• Provide general administrative support to Special Assistant in all facets of institutional advancement that help cultivate and steward our donors.

• Provide administrative support to major and leadership gift officers, including management of calendars, scheduling of appointments and travel details, and reimbursement for expenses. As directed, schedule/organize meetings and team/department activities.

• Provide administrative support to the alumni and constituent engagement, annual giving, and donor relations & stewardship teams. Assist with printing/collating and mailing letters, reports, receipts and other communications. Triaging multiple email accounts, sorting, prioritizing and routing incoming emails to facilitate appropriate action. Assisting with projects, as assigned.

• Keep effective online and traditional filing systems. Maintain records and organize filing and archive systems to facilitate the expeditious retrieval of information. Compose general correspondence, memos, tables, graphs, and related documents for the Advancement Officers. Proofread copy for spelling, grammar, and layout, making appropriate changes. Responsible for the accuracy and clarity of the final copy.

• Ensure prompt entry of all relevant gift officers activity into Raiser's Edge donor database and utilize database to ensure ongoing moves management of donor relationships. Utilize the database in the fulfillment of donor requests to help promote the advancement of Bennington College.

• Oversee and provide timely replies to inquiries received through various department email accounts, including the Alumni Relations email account

• Scan gifts into Raiser's Edge daily and create and circulate daily gift reports

• Order department supplies, consulting and keeping within expense budget

• Manage reservations and calendar for the Davis Alumni House on campus

• Promote a positive and congenial atmosphere and working relationship with alumni, parents, students, employees, supervisors, and additional individuals. Work effectively with personnel to complete designated duties. Act as representative for the major and leadership gift officers to College alumni, parents, and friends, and internal colleagues.

• Maintain confidentiality of information at all times. Use proper judgment to ensure efficiency of assigned duties and recommend improvements in work efficiency. Take direction and initiate actions to ensure effective/efficient work handling.

Qualifications

• Minimum education of high school diploma or GED equivalent; BA degree preferred.

• One to three years' data entry and general administrative experience is required.

• Demonstrated experience in progressively responsible positions that require high attention to detail, project management and coordination of multiple and competing priorities which require a high degree of autonomy and decision-making.

• Demonstrated understanding of a department/organization's strategic plan and how individual work supports and/or intersects with the overall plan.

• High degree of computer literacy (Microsoft Office and Google Suite). Must have demonstrated experience of high volume data entry, spreadsheets, attention to detail and coordination of database/systems; development experience and donor software experience preferred.

• Must be able to work with limited direction, handle multiple tasks and produce accurate and timely reports. Must have a high attention to detail and accuracy.

• Excellent communication skills and interpersonal skills. Demonstrated ability to accept sensitive/confidential information. Able to interact and communicate with individuals at all levels of the organization and able to demonstrate a high degree of discretion in interactions with alumni, parents, and friends of the College.

• Must be able to handle multiple tasks, produce accurate and timely work, and be able to attend to urgent needs while progressing on long-term projects.

• Requires ability to work both independently, with limited direction and ability to execute projects at an advanced level. Requires ability to function and contribute as a member of a close, collaborative team. Tasks will be assigned by multiple supervisors; must be able to balance priorities and communicate clearly with managers about the status of assignments.

• Requires ability to apply good judgment and responsible decision-making especially relating to project plans to ensure smooth and fluid execution of duties/plans.

This position requires successful completion and acceptable results of a background check.

The College

Bennington College offers a comprehensive benefits program to eligible positions that may include medical, dental, vision, life and long-term disability insurance, retirement plan with employer match, and educational benefits including Tuition Exchange scholarships. The College also offers an on-site fitness center as well as generous time off benefits (4 weeks of vacation, 10 sick days and 17 paid holidays).

Bennington College is a laboratory for innovation in higher education. At Bennington, learning and making-on campus and in the field-are inseparable, and its graduates are noted for their outsized impact on the world's stage. This campus celebrates the ongoing making of work-shared on walls, in shows and performances, in lectures and readings, and in conversations-and believes that equity, diversity, and inclusivity are vital to a collaborative community. This position captures, contributes to, and reflects the ethos of this creative community.

Nestled at the foot of the Green Mountains in Vermont, the campus consists of approximately 370 acres. The College was named one of ten with the best architecture by Architectural Digest. From campus, it is a short drive to the cultural offerings of the northern Berkshires in Massachusetts, Albany, New York, and many of Vermont's top recreational centers. New York City, Boston, and Burlington, Vermont are all within three and a half hours by car.