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Associate Vice President for Development

Employer
Washington & Jefferson College
Location
Pennsylvania, United States
Salary
$120,000.00 - $140,000.00
Closing date
Sep 1, 2021

Washington & Jefferson College (W&J) seeks an experienced, dynamic, and collaborative Associate Vice President for Development (AVP) to lead fundraising activities and staff during an exciting time of campus renewal. Reporting to the Vice President for Development and Alumni Engagement, the AVP will be a senior leader of the advancement program and will be jointly responsible for achieving the department’s annual fundraising goals. The AVP will have a unique opportunity to cultivate a culture of philanthropy and elevate the fundraising capabilities of the institution in anticipation of directing the college’s next comprehensive campaign.

Having just gone through a comprehensive strategic planning process, the W&J community is excited about the future growth and trajectory of the college. President John Knapp has outlined priority initiatives around social justice, environmentalism, and entrepreneurship that are galvanizing excitement and laying the groundwork for modernization. This provides ripe ground for the Development team to be innovative and opportunistic in identifying prospects, implementing strategies, and cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding major, planned, and principal gifts and corporate and foundation support.

Washington & Jefferson College is recognized nationally as a highly selective, residential, student-centered liberal arts college with an exceptional record of producing future leaders, whose graduates are prepared for a breadth of life opportunities and professional success. Toward that end, W&J asserts its place as Pittsburgh’s premiere liberal arts institution, a role it has played for more than 230 years. More broadly, it is known as a robust community of engaged and intellectually curious faculty, staff, and students.

This is an exciting opportunity for an accomplished leader to strengthen W&J’s advancement program through the implementation of best practices, team and capacity building, and the application of data-driven strategies that will create a philanthropic enterprise befitting a first-rate liberal arts college. The AVP will educate and engage all members of the W&J community in development efforts in ways that reflect the collaborative and collegial culture of the college. Working closely with college leaders, the AVP will play an essential role in identifying and setting advancement priorities, designing compelling cases for support, and facilitating regular lines of communication across campus to advance the college’s overall fundraising efforts. Further, the AVP will contribute to building a culture of trust in an environment of shared governance, developing relationships with campus leaders and all campus constituents in support of W&J’s academic mission and the vision of President Knapp.

In partnership with the Vice President for Development and Alumni Engagement, the AVP will be responsible for leading a donor-centric development program. This executive leadership position in the department of Development and Alumni Engagement involves managing and mentoring the college’s centralized development team to ensure donors’ wishes are fulfilled and W&J continues to support its students and faculty. This position functions as a thought leader of the fundraising effort for the college and ensures the college’s development team collectively surpasses annual fundraising goals as well as activity benchmarks. Leading by example, the AVP will manage a portfolio of major and principal gift prospects. The AVP will direct W&J’s next ambitious fundraising campaign. 

The ideal candidate must possess a minimum of 12 years of fundraising experience, a keen understanding of best practices in fundraising, expertise in managing a frontline fundraising team, and a demonstrated record of accomplishment in developing a successful development program. The candidate will be an expert at personally identifying, cultivating, and soliciting major and principal gifts. The candidate must possess a high level of integrity and credibility; be a self-starter with a sense of urgency and a clear set of priorities; and be adaptable to changing circumstances. The successful candidate must have extraordinary communication skills with a collegial, team-building style and a demonstrated ability to motivate staff as well as to cultivate productive, collaborative relationships with faculty and staff across campus. The candidate will create a professional work environment that rewards individual and collective success, builds confidence, and promotes diversity in all its forms. An undergraduate degree is required, and an advanced degree is preferred.

Washington & Jefferson College

Washington & Jefferson College (W&J) has been offering students a liberal arts education since 1781. Washington & Jefferson College is one of the nation’s oldest and most distinguished co-educational, four-year liberal arts colleges for undergraduate students. Liberal education fits people for work and for life. It develops the intellect and the soul. Tradition is important at W&J, the oldest college west of the Allegheny mountains. Historically, W&J has been a place for risk-takers, innovators, creative thinkers, and hard workers who have been engaged in struggles like carving out a new life on the frontier or fashioning new ways of being and thinking. W&J has always graduated students of uncommon integrity; the liberal arts experience enables students to crack through the shell of conformity to emerge as individuals capable of making significant contributions to their communities. Each student’s intellect is developed to its potential and each student leaves the College with a set of tools that enable them to continue to grow and develop as a productive member of the global community.

The College’s mission is to graduate people of uncommon integrity, competence, and maturity who are effective lifelong learners and responsible citizens, and who are prepared to contribute substantially to the world in which they live. To this end, the College promotes the development of skills, knowledge, personal qualities, and a worldview that characterize a well-educated person. All components of the living and learning environment at W&J are designed and intended to support this mission.

Dr. John C. Knapp 

President and Professor of Religion

John C. Knapp, Ph.D., is the 13th president of Washington & Jefferson College, one of America’s oldest and most distinguished liberal arts institutions, founded in 1781. He also serves as a professor of religion in the college’s Department of Philosophy.

Dr. Knapp is an internationally known author and speaker with leadership experience spanning the education, non-profit, and business sectors. Prior to joining W&J in 2017, he was president of Hope College in Holland, Mich., where he led the development and implementation of a 10-year strategic plan to enhance academic quality, campus diversity, employee development, and post-graduation outcomes for students. 

Previously, he was the founding director of Samford University’s Frances Marlin Mann Center for Ethics and Leadership, concurrently serving as University Professor and holding an endowed professorship. He directed a wide range of programs and supported teaching and scholarship in the schools of the arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, law, nursing, and pharmacy.

Before joining Samford, Dr. Knapp served as professor and director of the Center for Ethics and Corporate Responsibility at Georgia State University’s J. Mack Robinson College of Business. The Center was established under his leadership in 1993 as the independent Southern Institute for Business and Professional Ethics, a leading executive education resource for leaders seeking to strengthen ethics and integrity in organizations. His programs were attended by more than 20,000 executives and managers from hundreds of corporations, governmental agencies, nonprofits, and professional firms.

Dr. Knapp’s philosophy of liberal arts education extends to the value he places on diversity and inclusion. At Hope College, where he achieved annual goals for greater student diversity while also raising the academic profile of incoming classes, he was respected by the college’s students, faculty, and alumni for fostering a culture of inclusion, respect, and support, especially for students and employees from underrepresented groups. While in Atlanta, he founded and led the Diversity Management Network, a five-year, grant-funded consortium involving leaders of more than 40 of the region’s largest employers. His diversity advocacy was recognized in 2013 with the Urban League’s Multicultural Friendship Award in Birmingham, Ala.

As a leader among his peers in higher education, Dr. Knapp chairs The Oxford Conclave on Global Higher Education, a retreat for college and university presidents held annually England’s University of Oxford. He also has served twice as chair of The New York Times Presidents Council, a representative group of private college presidents who meet with the newspaper’s higher education reporters for background discussions of issues facing institutions and the industry. In addition, he serves on the boards of the Council of Independent Colleges, American Association of Presidents of Independent Colleges and Universities, Clemson University’s Robert J. Rutland Institute for Ethics, and the Pennsylvania Consortium for the Liberal Arts, among several other higher education associations.

Dr. Knapp’s scholarship includes numerous articles and five books, including the three-volume The Business of Higher Education. His work as a scholar was recognized in 2009 when he was named a fellow of the Caux Round Table; in 2007 with his induction into the Martin Luther King Jr. International Collegium of Scholars at Morehouse College; in 2001 with the Georgia Governor's Award in the Humanities; and in 1995 with Columbia Theological Seminary’s Florrie Wilkes Sanders Prize in Theology. In 2013, Hope College awarded him the honorary Doctor of Letters degree.

Earlier in his career he served for more than a decade as president of an Atlanta-based corporate communication firm. During this time, Atlanta Business Chronicle twice recognized him as the region’s leading crisis management consultant; Business Atlanta (now Georgia Trend) selected him for its list of the “40 Under 40” successful young executives; and Outstanding Atlanta Foundation named him one of the “Ten Outstanding Young People of Atlanta.”

Dr. Knapp earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree in theology and religious studies at the University of Wales, United Kingdom; a Master of Arts degree in theological studies at Columbia Theological Seminary; and a Bachelor of Science degree in urban life with a concentration in communication at Georgia State University. He and his wife, Kelly, have five adult children: Amanda, Tracy, Charlie, Mary, and Ron. They have five grandchildren.

Dr. Carolyn Campbell 

Vice President for Development and Alumni Engagement

Dr. Campbell has worked as an administrator for higher education and non-profits for nearly 30 years, and comes to W&J after a lengthy tenure in the Auburn University system. She established the university’s Office of Corporate and Foundation Relations in 1999, and later served as Vice Chancellor for Advancement at Auburn Montgomery (AUM). She has taught as an adjunct professor and established an endowed scholarship at Auburn for working mothers who are pursuing a degree.

Dr. Campbell has served in university strategic planning processes; provided leadership and direction through university accreditation processes; spearheaded initiatives promoting diversity and inclusion; established and implemented faculty and staff advocacy committees; and provided expert leadership and worked collaboratively with governing and foundation boards within the university system, in addition to work in her community.

Dr. Campbell holds a master’s degree in Management from Faulkner University, master’s and doctorate degrees in Higher Education Administration from Auburn University, completed Harvard’s Institute for Educational Management program, holds a certificate in College and University Teaching, and is distinguished as a Fulbright Scholar.

Advancement at W&J

With an endowment valued at approximately $140 million, W&J has a legacy of endowment giving in support of faculty chairs and student scholarships. The college is currently raising between $7 million and $8 million in annual philanthropic support. There are nearly 16,000 living alumni with a dedicated track record of volunteer support; the alumni giving rate is approximately 15 percent. The board of W&J has a strong history of support with a 100 percent giving rate. The board and the president are invested in the future of W&J and are planning to launch a comprehensive fundraising campaign in the coming years. The last campaign for W&J, Uncommon Bond, raised $116 million for the college. Fundraising priorities include exciting new capital projects like a student union and welcome center, faculty support, student financial aid, and continued revitalization of infrastructure.

The advancement division comprises a team of 18 professionals in major gifts, corporate and foundation relations, annual fund, alumni engagement, and operations, including stewardship, database management, and prospect research.

Associate Vice President for Development

The Associate Vice President for Development will set strategy and provide leadership for major gift officers and a corporate and foundation relations gift officer, manage a portfolio of major gift prospects, and serve as campaign manager for future campaign initiatives. As a member of the VP’s leadership team, the AVP will be a thought leader and influencer of culture, goals, strategies, and tactics across the division. The AVP will set, track, and drive the frontline team’s activity benchmarks.

Essential Duties

  • Leads the Development team in planning and implementing long- and short-term strategies to secure gifts from individual and institutional prospects and donors.
  • Works with the VP to establish measurable goals to increase fundraising results that are achievable and aspirational.
  • Maintains a portfolio and solicits major and planned gifts.
  • Mentors, trains, supervises, and evaluates staff.
  • Develops strong, positive relationships with the college community.
  • Keeps abreast and implements best practices in the development profession and evaluates new and emerging giving ideas for potential implementation at Washington and Jefferson.
  • Helps to develop and implement policies related to fundraising in collaboration with the VP.
  • Serve as campaign manager for future fundraising initiatives.

Experience and Qualifications

The ideal candidate will bring many of the following professional qualities and experiences:

  • A minimum of 12 years of experience, the majority of which are within a development operation.
  • Successful track record in major gifts, planned giving, and development team leadership in senior leadership roles.
  • Ability to relate well to and understand the needs and interests of the alumni community to strengthen their engagement with the college.
  • Consistent track record of designing, implementing, and executing on successful development strategies that have resulted in significant increases in engagement and participation.
  • Demonstrated success in leading collaborative relationships and utilizing data and technology to build strategic plans and new initiatives.
  • Ability to initiate, follow-through, analyze, monitor, and evaluate programming.
  • Dedication to promoting the college’s priorities through developing excellent working relationships with faculty, senior academic leaders, trustees, the alumni association, and other volunteers and college advancement teams.
  • Proven problem solving and reasoning skills, analytical skills, and oral, written, and interpersonal communication skills.
  • Demonstrated personal interest in and affinity for private liberal arts education. A deep passion for higher education. An undergraduate degree is required, and an advanced degree is welcomed.
  • The ability to travel and work during evenings and weekends as needed.
  • Possess and maintain a valid driver’s license; successfully complete a driver’s license verification on an annual basis; and complete the National Safety Council Defensive Driver Training once every three years.

Location

W&J’s beautiful campus is located in Washington, Pennsylvania, a charming and growing area with a history of progressive leadership and a healthy contemporary lifestyle. Washington is just 30 miles outside of Pittsburgh—a national leader in entrepreneurship, culture, food, and green living. The location is the best of both worlds: an attractive, historic campus with one of the most vibrant and fun cities in the country a short distance away.

Compensation

The salary range for the AVP is $120,000 - $140,000. Washington & Jefferson College offers a comprehensive benefits package, including health, vision, and dental coverage, group life insurance, AD&D and LTD coverage, retirement plan, generous leave time, and the tuition benefit programs. These benefits add significantly to the employee’s total compensation package.

Interested in Learning More?

Washington & Jefferson College has partnered with Talent Citizen to assist in this recruitment. Please contact President Tracy D. Welsh and Senior Associate Rachel K. Partin to share your biographical materials via email at: washjeff-avpd@talentcitizen.com.

Washington & Jefferson College (W&J) is committed to increasing diversity in our community and actively pursues individuals from all backgrounds. Additionally, W&J College complies with all applicable federal, state, and local laws and provides equal opportunity in all educational programs and activities, admission of students and conditions of employment for all qualified individuals regardless of race, color, sex, religion, age, disability, sexual orientation, protected veteran status, gender identity, or national origin. 

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