Director Of Annual Giving

About Alvernia University

Alvernia University was founded in 1958 by the Bernardine Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis. Through its main campus in Reading and locations in Philadelphia and Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, the university serves 3,000 students of diverse backgrounds from around the country.

Alvernia offers a unique blend of rigorous liberal arts core education for the development of the mind, strong technical training in many high-demand majors, experiential learning through study abroad and internship experiences, and engagement with the community through our Franciscan-based community service model. We call our model of transformational education the Alvernia Advantage, and we believe this style of education transforms students into ethical leaders with moral courage.

Alvernia University ranks in the top 100 among 2021 Best Regional Universities in the North by U.S. News & World Report, and we are recognized as a College of Distinction for our commitment to engaged experiential education.

Job Summary:

The responsibilities include planning, implementing and managing Alvernia University's annual fund program. Major program responsibilities include phonathon; direct mail; and solicitation of alumni, friends, parents and Faculty/Staff. This position is primarily responsible for annual fund planning and analysis; recruiting, hiring, training and managing phonathon students and volunteers; writing solicitation letters; ordering data; working with direct mail vendors and maintaining/tracking program statistics.

Essential Functions:

• Promote Franciscan ideals and adherence to the Mission of the University as demonstrated by the University Ideal Characteristics. As we are an equal opportunity employer committed to Franciscan values, all employees share responsibility for advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in the performance of their roles while demonstrating: service orientation, respect for all, intellectual curiosity, solution focus and innovation, and mutual accountability.

• Design and implement a strategic plan, with a focus on annual donor acquisition, renewal, upgrade and reacquisition to increase annual giving from alumni, parents, friends, campus community and the corporate community.

• Collaborating with the development staff, manage the Cedar Hill Annual Giving Society and develop a plan for acquiring and retaining donors in the society.

• Create systems to monitor donor giving patters to identify potential major gift prospects for Alvernia University.

• Manage a personal portfolio of 50 prospects and donors to ensure timely moves are made towards cultivation, solicitation and closure.

• Plan, implement and manage fall and spring phonathon programs, including recruiting, hiring and managing students and volunteers; writing scripts and support materials; ordering and preparing prospect sheets; identifying target constituent segments for solicitation and maintaining program statistics.

• Plan and implement a comprehensive direct mail program, including identifying target constituent segments for solicitation; conceptualizing themes; ordering data; writing letters and support pieces; proofing written pieces and data and communicating with direct mail vendors.

• Plan, organize and implement faculty/staff solicitation program, including drafting solicitation letters, brochures and response cards; ordering data and working with direct mail vendors.

• Research, recommend and develop plans to integrate the annual fund into the University's online presence, primarily through the website and electronic communication.

• Conduct student fund-raising activities, including Senior Class Gift Program. Collaborate with other Advancement Staff and other University departments in developing educational programs focused on sharing the roles of Alumni Relations and Institutional Advancement with current Alvernia students.

• Conduct and monitor stewardship activities related to donors.

• Promote Franciscan ideals and adherence to the Mission of the University.

Additional Responsibilities:

• Represent the Institutional Advancement Office at University events and alumni functions.

• Serve the Institutional Advancement team in other capacities related to alumni, development, capital campaign, University relations and marketing activities as determined by the Vice President.

Qualifications:

• Commitment to the mission statement, core values and goals of Alvernia University.

• Baccalaureate Degree.

• Confidence in soliciting gifts via telephone and personal visits.

• Experience with word processing and database packages and ability to learn and use the University's database and reporting software.

• Minimum three years' experience running annual gift campaigns or a closely related development field preferred.

• Outstanding written, oral and listening skills.

Physical Requirements:

• Attendance is required in order to perform the duties of this job.

• Valid driver's license.

• Occasional travel is required.

• Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer.

• Must be able to lift 15 pounds at times.