Chief Development Officer

Aspen Leadership Group is proud to partner with Monticello (The Thomas Jefferson Foundation) in the search for a Chief Development Officer.

Reporting to the President, the Chief Development Officer will be responsible for strategy, planning, and implementation of all fundraising and donor engagement efforts at Monticello. The Chief Development Officer will ensure Monticello's continued philanthropic success by providing bold leadership and strategic vision that broaden outreach and increase contributed revenue year-over-year. In close partnership with the President and Vice President for External Relations, the Chief Development Officer will develop and implement a comprehensive and robust multi-year plan for fundraising that includes principal and major gifts, planned giving, annual giving, and corporate and foundation support. The Chief Development Officer will foster a culture of excellence, collaboration, and professional growth—recruiting, inspiring, and motivating a development team that meets ambitious goals and objectives.

Monticello, in Charlottesville, Virginia, was the center of Thomas Jefferson's world. The house can be seen as his autobiographical masterpiece—designed and redesigned and built and rebuilt for more than 40 years. Monticello encompassed a house, an ornamental landscape, a farm, a large plantation, two small mountains, and a large and diverse community of legal family and enslaved workers. Its gardens were a botanic showpiece, a source of food, and an experimental laboratory of ornamental and useful plants from around the world. It encapsulated the interests, talents, ideals, ambitions, and realities of its creative and complex owner.

For over 100 years, Monticello has been maintained and kept open to the public by the Thomas Jefferson Foundation, Inc., which owns and stewards more than half of Jefferson's original plantation lands. Since 1923, the Foundation has instituted numerous research and educational programs and major restoration and renovation projects, and Monticello has welcomed more than 33 million visitors. Monticello is a National Historic Landmark, an international Site of Conscience, and the only presidential house in the United States designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. As a private, nonprofit 501(c)3 corporation, the Foundation receives no ongoing federal, state, or local funding.

The Thomas Jefferson Foundation brings rigorous history forward into national and global dialogues. The Foundation seeks to facilitate conversations and to use its extensive documentary corpus and research base to stimulate interactions on a variety of topics that were of keen interest to Jefferson, among the most powerful of which are liberty and self-government. Through its work with educators, thought leaders, and especially with the general public, Monticello is an engine of civic renewal, teaching the content, principles, and skills necessary for the continued flourishing of American constitutional democracy.

A bachelor's degree or an equivalent combination of education and experience is preferred for this position, as is at least eight years of development or related experience. The Foundation will consider candidates with a broad range of backgrounds. If you are excited about this role and feel that you can contribute to Monticello, but your experience does not exactly align with every qualification listed above, we encourage you to apply. All applications must be accompanied by a cover letter and résumé. Cover letters should be responsive to the mission of Monticello as well as the responsibilities and qualifications stated in the prospectus.

Monticello and the Thomas Jefferson Foundation are committed to the inclusion of all qualified candidates. If you require reasonable accommodation in completing this application, interviewing, or participating in the selection process, please contact Michael Carver at michaelcarver@aspenleadershipgroup.com.

To apply for this position, visit: https://opportunities.aspenleadershipgroup.com/opportunities/1709.


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