Posted: 15-Jan-26
Location: New York, New York
Type: Full Time
Salary: $160,000 to $180,000 per annum
Required Education:
Job Title: Director of Major and Planned Gifts
Department: Advancement
FLSA Status: Exempt
The Hewitt School - New York, NY
ABOUT HEWITT
Established in 1920 and located in New York City, The Hewitt School is an independent K-12 girls’ school whose mission is to inspire girls and young women to become game changers and ethical leaders who forge an equitable, sustainable, and joyous future. Hewitt empowers and expects our community members to embrace multiple points of view, to engage others with empathy and integrity, and to champion equity and justice in all areas of our lives. As a community, Hewitt is fully committed to a culturally diverse faculty, staff, and student body.
POSITION SUMMARY
The director of major and planned gifts reports to the director of advancement, and is responsible for identifying strategic opportunities and developing and implementing initiatives to identify, cultivate, solicit, steward, and retain major donors and planned giving prospects to ensure a strong base of perpetual financial support for The Hewitt School.
An experienced fundraiser, the director of major and planned gifts manages Hewitt’s top prospect pool and works directly with the director of advancement to engage, solicit, and steward the School’s most capable donors.
This position holds the primary responsibility for gifts of estates, trusts, and various other financial vehicles that reflect financial planning and deferred giving opportunities for Hewitt. The director of major and planned gifts administers gift planning efforts within the advancement office.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS/RESPONSIBILITIES
- Develop an annual portfolio of one hundred plus viable major gift and planned gift prospects focused on securing funds for The Hewitt School
- Manage this portfolio of assigned donors and ensure donor retention through annually qualifying, acquiring, retaining, reactivating, and upgrading their contributions in a timely manner
- Support the overall long-term financial strength of Hewitt by visiting with major and prospective donors about a variety of gift possibilities, including deferred and planned gifts; and leveraging the head of school, director of advancement, and other campus partners on these visits
- Support the director of advancement in all campaign related phases from campaign committee support to executing cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies
- Focus on gifts of $10,000 and greater, creating individual goals for each person in their portfolio based on the donor’s history of giving and the School's knowledge of that donor’s inclination
- Review annual goals for the number of personal visits, number of solicitations, and projected dollars raised
- Maintain familiarity with gift accounting rules and close coordination with the business office to ensure best-practice record keeping procedures are in place
- Design and implement innovative strategies to identify, cultivate, and solicit major donors and planned giving prospects for major gifts, effectively preparing high-quality meeting materials, stewardship reports, and major gift solicitations/proposals
- Manage communication and donor interactions with programmatic leadership, including the head of school
- Prepare and enter contact reports from prospect interactions on a timely basis, and execute a “moves management” system while working with donors
- Strong understanding of diversity, equity, and inclusivity (DEI) best practices as applied to fundraising activities and proactively engaging with DEI training
- Identify, cultivate, and solicit potential planned gift donors
- Apply industry best practices, maintain awareness of successful initiatives from peer institutions, and actively make recommendations to grow and develop Hewitt’s planned giving program
- Create a planned giving marketing plan to cultivate and steward ongoing donors and planned giving prospects; establish and maintain a planned giving recognition society for donors
- Create collateral and promote the benefits and opportunities offered by planned giving options; enhance donor gift planning by remaining current in all areas of gift possibilities available through Hewitt and the current laws and regulations governing such gifts
- Assist Hewitt in meeting fundraising goals by having a thorough understanding of current capital projects, needs for endowments, the annual giving program, and the Benefit
- Use Raiser’s Edge to track and manage donor/prospect portfolio and monitor individual results toward fundraising goals; adhere to timely reporting of results to ensure accuracy of the fundraising pipeline and year-end projection forecasts
QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED
- Demonstrated commitment to anti-bias education and social justice
- Bachelor’s degree
- Minimum of eight to ten years experience in fundraising, campaign management, planned gifts, or donor relations, preferably in an education or nonprofit setting
- Proven track record of successful campaign management and fundraising
- Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to articulate the School’s mission and impact effectively
- Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to build relationships with diverse stakeholders
- Proficiency in fundraising software and CRM systems, along with a solid understanding of data analysis technology
- Strong organizational skills and impeccable attention to detail, with the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously
QUALIFICATIONS DESIRED
- Proficient with Mac platforms; comfortable with technology or demonstrated ability to learn quickly
- Proven dedication to professional growth and purpose-driven practice
- Professional practice and ability to model contemplation as part of intellectual exploration
SALARY RANGE
Starting Salary Range: $160,000 to $180,000 (salary based upon, but not limited to, relevant experience and expertise)
TO APPLY: Please submit a resumé, cover letter, and examples of previous relevant work via our applicant tracking portal. Cover letters should reflect a careful reading of The Hewitt School’s website, including the School’s academic philosophy. No phone calls, please. Recruitment will remain open until the position is filled; applicants should apply as soon as possible for consideration.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
The Hewitt School is an Equal Opportunity Employer. It has been and will continue to be a fundamental policy of the School not to discriminate on the basis of any category prohibited by applicable federal, New York State and/or New York City laws/regulations. This policy applies to all aspects of the employment process, including hiring, promotion, demotion, compensation/benefits, performance evaluations, disciplinary actions, training, working conditions, layoff, and termination.
QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED
- Demonstrated commitment to anti-bias education and social justice
- Bachelor’s degree
- Minimum of eight to ten years experience in fundraising, campaign management, planned gifts, or donor relations, preferably in an education or nonprofit setting
- Proven track record of successful campaign management and fundraising
- Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to articulate the School’s mission and impact effectively
- Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to build relationships with diverse stakeholders
- Proficiency in fundraising software and CRM systems, along with a solid understanding of data analysis technology
- Strong organizational skills and impeccable attention to detail, with the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously
QUALIFICATIONS DESIRED
- Proficient with Mac platforms; comfortable with technology or demonstrated ability to learn quickly
- Proven dedication to professional growth and purpose-driven practice
- Professional practice and ability to model contemplation as part of intellectual exploration