Research and Program Coordinator

Research and Program Coordinator

Office of Institutional Advancement

Exempt, Regular, Full-Time, Pay Grade 1.2

Location: Hybrid in MD or Remote

Position Summary

Under general supervision and working alongside fundraisers, academic, and programmatic leadership, provides research services for the Government Affairs and Strategic Partnership (GSP) units, complex data entry, program, and project management to support across business units and programs with pertinent donor, alumni, and student records. Responsible for identifying public and private funding opportunities based on strategic need and assessing appropriate fit of highly technical funding programs. Acts as project manager for IA strategic events and programs; responsible for management of all intake efforts, scheduling and coordinating stakeholder meetings and communications, task management, and routine follow-up for all project tracking in the Microsoft Planner and other system tools. Acts as a power user to support the maintenance of a CRM and grants management tracking; Work requires comprehensive knowledge of the organization or program where assigned, skill in working with issues related to policy, procedures, and confidential matters, and involves considerable participation in the work of the supervisor. Incumbents exercise discretion and judgment with considerable consequence of error.

 

Responsibilities

• Identify and select sources of funding that align with UMGC and USM projects and opportunities. will contribute to the strategy and drive implementation to renew and steward our current foundation funders and build our foundation prospect pipeline to identify and secure new sources of revenue in support of our mission and strategic priorities.

• Continuously and proactively articulate findings from research, staying abreast of major international and business news, utilizing social media and other resources to enhance prospect strategies and stewardship.

• Collaborate with University leadership and grants consultants to refine project scopes. Contribute to proposal narratives in the form of best practices research, literature reviews, and needs assessments.

• Assisting the IA Development team in efforts to provide biographical, financial, and informational research on individual, corporate and foundation prospects.

• Initiates and facilitates the Advancement Services intake meeting process utilizing project management systems and tools to organize tasks, tracks progress as well as schedule follow up meetings when needed. Ensures communication is maintained throughout projects.

• Initiates and facilitates onboarding and trainings for all tools and systems for new IA staff and periodic refresher trainings for current IA staff. Works with tool and systems owners within IA and stakeholders across the university, as well as the IA IT liaison to ensure staff are trained in a timely and effective fashion. Design a tracking system for trainings, training documentation, and participants. 

 

Essential Skills Required:

• Candidates must provide leadership and have effective critical thinking skills. It is essential that the individual in this role have strong skills in initiative, collaboration, decision making, communication, and project management.

• Experience writing and researching for an academic leadership audience

• Ability both to accept and to provide constructive feedback

• Strong communication, fact-checking, writing, and editing skills in the English language

• Strong interest in prospect research, fundraising strategy, grant writing, and the organizations we serve

• Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail

• Ability to work quickly and independently with minimal guidance or oversight

• Ability to work under pressure in a fast-paced environment

• Demonstrable problem-solving skills and work ethic

• Proven academic achievement

 

REQUIRED EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:

• Bachelor’s degree from an institution of higher learning plus a minimum of two (2) years of progressively responsible experience in a higher education, fundraising or grant relations environment. 

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, time management skills, attention to detail, and the ability to work in a fast-paced environment.

PREFERRED EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:

• Grants and non-profit management experience is highly preferred.

• Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, Project Management systems.

• Salesforce and Tableau also highly preferred.