Senior Director of Planned Giving

Morehouse College, one of the nation’s most influential historically black colleges, and a preeminent men’s liberal arts college, seeks a strategic and engaging planned giving fundraiser to serve as the Senior Director of Planned Giving.

The Position: Reporting to the Vice President of Institutional Advancement, the Senior Director of Planned Giving is responsible for planning, managing, and executing fundraising activity for Morehouse College with an emphasis on planned gifts and major gifts. The Senior Director will identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward major and deferred investments from alumni, parents, faculty, and friends and assist with efforts in growing a strong deferred giving program. The Senior Director creates and implements successful strategies for annual, major, and deferred gift solicitations. The Senior Director serves as a strategic leader amongst the College’s Office of Institutional Advancement team and helps shape and execute the planned giving effort for the Campaign for Morehouse College, Making Men of Consequence. The Office of Institutional Advancement works to successfully secure $500 Million in private gifts throughout the course of the Campaign for Morehouse College, with an increasing number of irrevocable agreements. To support the Campaign, the Senior Director will Develop a strategic plan that aligns with demographic data, market demands, changes/modifications to applicable tax law, and the financial needs and vision of the College. They will also develop an annual operating plan with measurable targets so that the financial and programmatic goals of the division and Campaign have been achieved. This individual will work collaboratively with leadership and other colleagues within the Office of Institutional Advancement as well as other divisions across the campus to meet Campaign objectives. The Senior Director will creatively market the breadth of Morehouse’s Planned Giving services throughout the United States and internationally and will bring best-practices in the industry and implement these techniques at Morehouse to secure estate gifts and other planned giving instruments to benefit the long-term objectives of the College.

The person filling this role will focus on this goal through their own portfolio work and support the planned giving work of colleagues throughout the division. Working closely with front-line fundraising staff, the Senior Director will provide effective gift planning tools and training, develop strategies to identify and cultivate prospects in portfolios toward deferred gifts, monitor all deferred gift prospects across all staff portfolios to assure that prospects are actively moving through the cultivation and solicitation cycle, and provide ongoing training and support on the basics of gift planning—especially as it relates to creative gift planning techniques that will advance the comprehensive campaign.

The Institution: Founded in 1867, Morehouse College has been producing extraordinary leaders, visionaries, and pillars of the community for more than 150 years. Morehouse’s mission is to develop disciplined minds to lead lives of leadership and service by emphasizing the intellectual and character development of its students. The College has prepared young men to change the world through leadership and service—driven by innovation, technology, global cultural dexterity, and a liberal arts foundation of knowledge. Famous graduates like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Spike Lee are joined by five Rhodes scholars, as well as congressmen, business titans, college presidents, and many more who proudly represent the Morehouse ideals. Morehouse College is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) to award baccalaureate degrees. The College serves approximately 2,200 undergraduate students and offers those students individualized attention through a 14:1 student-to-faculty ratio. The College offers more than 32 undergraduate major and 33 minor programs through seven academic divisions including Business Administration and Economics, Creative and Performing Arts, Experiential Learning and Interdisciplinary Studies, Humanities, Life Sciences, Mathematics and Computational Sciences, and Social and Cultural Studies. Morehouse’s iconic campus rests on 66 acres, just southwest of downtown Atlanta. Morehouse is a member of the Atlanta University Center (AUC) along with Clark Atlanta University, the Interdenominational Theological Center, and Spelman College. The AUC is the world’s largest HBCU consortium and shares the Woodruff Library. To learn more about Morehouse College, please visit: https://www.morehouse.edu

Qualifications: Candidates must have an appreciation for the rich history and tradition of Morehouse College and its position as one of the nation’s preeminent liberal arts colleges. The successful candidate will have related or transferable, as well as progressively responsible, experience in fundraising/advancement; a proven track record of leveraging data analysis to drive outcomes; and an ability to lead and influence non-hierarchical, cross-functional work groups. The position requires demonstrated commitment to philanthropic values and a commitment to service; effective communication skills; the ability to work collaboratively across an institution and an alumni base; and a strong work ethic. A bachelor's degree is required; an advanced degree, particularly related to law, is preferred. Experience within significantly large comprehensive campaigns is valued.

Location: Atlanta, Georgia’s vibrant capital, is a city of more than four million people. The city has played center stage to many historical events throughout the civil war and the civil rights movement. More than 1,000 international businesses operate in the city and the city boasts the third largest concentration of Fortune 500 companies in the country. Retaining its reputation as a transportation hub, Atlanta houses the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the world’s busiest in daily passenger flights. The city offers residents and visitors nearly endless opportunities for enrichment and entertainment such as the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, Zoo Atlanta, High Museum, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Centennial Olympic Park, along with many music venues, and sports complexes. To learn more about the city of Atlanta, please visit: https://www.atlantaga.gov

Application: Interested candidates should submit only a cover letter and resume to RPA Inc. at MorehouseSDPG@rpainc.org. For a confidential discussion about this opportunity or to make a nomination, please email Dana John Cohick, President, or Kira Health, Search Manager at the email address listed above. Recruitment will be conducted through September and October 2022, with candidates being reviewed as they arrive.

Diversity among its administrators, faculty, staff, and students is a Morehouse College commitment. Morehouse college is an affirmative action / equal opportunity employer. It is our policy to provide equal employment opportunities for all individuals without regard to race, sex, religion, color, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other classification protected by applicable law.