Director of Institutional Advancement

Founded in 1961, Sandy Spring Friends School is a progressive,
coed, academically-rigorous day and boarding school serving
approximately 700 students from age three through 12th grade. The
campus is located on 140 acres in the historic Sandy Spring area of
Montgomery County, Maryland, and the School is approved by the
Maryland State Board of Education and accredited by the Association
of Independent Maryland Schools.

Our school’s culture, rooted in the idea that collaboration
engenders achievement, can be traced to our Quaker heritage and
abiding belief in the Quaker values of simplicity, equality,
honesty, stewardship of the environment, and peaceful resolution of
conflict.

Director of Institutional Advancement, Full time, 12
months, Exempt

Position start date is July 1 with an option to start
earlier if mutually agreeable

Summary: The Director of Institutional
Advancement is the School’s chief fundraising strategist, a leader
in donor cultivation, and one of the main solicitors of major
gifts. Working closely with the Head of School, Board of Trustees,
parents/guardians, current and past employees, alumni, and other
constituent groups, the Director of Institutional Advancement
engages in fundraising that supports the annual and long-term
operating, capital, and endowment needs of the School and in
alignment with the current five-year strategic plan. The Director
of Institutional Advancement plans and executes the strategies for
fundraising around the school’s initiatives and philanthropic
priorities overseeing a team of Advancement professionals dedicated
to these endeavors. The Director of Institutional Advancement
raises funds and builds donor relationships that will be used to
advance the mission and philosophy of Sandy Spring Friends School
and ensure the school’s long-term financial sustainability. The
Director of institutional Advancement reports directly to the Head
of School and serves as a senior administrator on the School’s
Administrative Council. The Director works closely with the Chief
Financial Officer, Director of Operations, Assistant Head of
School, Director of Marketing and Communications, Director of
Enrollment Management, Board Advancement Committee, and other
school leaders to fulfill the mission, vision, and brand of the
school.

Essential Job Functions:

• Work closely with the Head of School to develop a vision and
  strategic direction for the School’s advancement efforts and
  oversees all aspects of the Advancement Office, including leading,
  supervising, and mentoring Advancement staff, and the execution of
  fundraising programs to achieve the school’s annual and long-term
  fundraising goals.

  • Advancement Office includes: Director of Institutional
    Advancement, Associate Director of Annual Fund, Associate Director
    of Stewardship, Associate Director of Alumni Relations, Advancement
    Services Associate

• Serves as a major gifts officer and provides strategies, data,
  and donor information to the Head of School to support
  solicitations made directly by the Head of School

• Works closely with the Chief Financial Officer to ensure
  accurate financial record keeping related to all aspects of
  Advancement

• Leads the identification, cultivation, solicitation, and
  stewardship of donor prospects at all giving levels; expanding the
  school’s fundraising capacity through prospect research and
  industry research

• Stewards major donors and manages the portfolio of leadership
  gift prospects

• Grows the School’s Annual Fund efforts, buoying both
  participation rates and dollars raised annually by all
  constituencies

• Oversee a planned giving program

• Oversee capital campaigns

• Oversee campaigns for the endowment

• Supports the Board of Trustees by working with the Board
  Advancement Committee to establish strategic fundraising goals,
  policies, and plans and the Board Committee on Trustees’ for
  identifying, prospective Trustees

• Supports the efforts of the Parents Association, collaborates
  with PA leadership, and supports PA events and communications while
  building and managing a pool of volunteers from the school
  community to aid fundraising efforts and maintaining relationships
  with faculty and staff, alumni, parents/guardians, students,
  trustees, and friends of the School

• Responsible for the planning, building, management and execution
  of the annual Parent Association Auction

• Works with the Director of Marketing and Communications to
  create strategic, effective outreach and messaging to the broader
  SSFS community (current families, alumni, parents of alumni, former
  Trustees, etc.) including newsletters, social media, print and
  digital materials, event promotions, advancement webpages, and
  communications related to solicitations and stewardship

• Assists in building relationships with potential corporate
  sponsors for events such as Auction and securing grant-based
  funding appropriate to the school’s mission and goals

• Engage with alumni to strengthen their connections with the
  school and to cultivate their giving

• Other duties as assigned by the Head of School

Knowledge and Skill Set Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree required; Advanced degree with focus on
  fundraising or school administration preferred, 3-5 years of
  experience in advancement and fundraising preferred

• Professional experience and proven success in fundraising,
  public relations, and alumni relations, preferably in a mission
  driven independent school environment

• Demonstrated success in major fundraising and major gifts
  solicitation as well as capital campaign development and
  management

• Proven skill at annual fundraising, donor cultivation and
  demonstrated strategic and long-range planning skills with
  excellent fiscal management skills

• A visionary leader who is able to embrace Quaker values and
  Quaker decision-making processes

• Excellent fiscal management skills

• Proven skills in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion,
  with experience leading and working successfully in a diverse
  environment

• A collaborative leader and worker with strong internal
  motivation, follow-through, and strong interpersonal, verbal,
  written and executive functioning skills

• A seasoned individual who understands the independent school
  landscape and the fundraising climate within the Washington Metro
  area.

• A strong appreciation for the connections between advancement,
  marketing and communications, admissions, and school finance

• Strong verbal and written communication skills

• Strong interpersonal skills

• Strength in research, data collection, and analysis

• An advanced understanding of, and ability to use, technology,
  including Microsoft Office, and on-line technologies (including
  Google, Veracross)

• Creativity and innovation

Physical Requirements: Daily desk work
including significant amounts of telephone and computer time; as
part of daily routines, the ability to move around a large campus
with uneven pavement and managing stairs; frequent walking inside
and outside responding to campus issues and/or checking on various
departmental progress.

Please note that the School has a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination
policy, which requires that all employees be fully vaccinated
against COVID-19 and provide proof of vaccination, including
documentation of a booster shot given five months or more since you
completed the final dose in the primary series.

Functional Competencies:

• Leadership/Integrity- Effectively communicates the School’s
  shared purpose; builds trust among colleagues; is accountable;
  lives up to commitments

• Team Player/Commitment- Understands the big picture and manages
  areas of responsibility in a manner consistent with the School’s
  mission and culture

• Interpersonal Skills- Relates to employees, students, parents
  and clients in a cooperative manner

• Productivity/Organizing/Planning- Meets deadlines, demonstrates
  effective use of time and handles multiple assignments
  successfully

• Professional Growth- Understands and acknowledges the need for
  growth and is receptive to constructive feedback

Commitment to Diversity: Sandy Spring Friends
School embraces the Quaker testimony of Equality and seeks
applicants who represent all backgrounds and demonstrate a
commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. We greatly value
our diverse student population with 53% of students
self-identifying as people of color . We actively seek faculty
representatives of our students’ diversity. Click to learn more about
diversity at Sandy Spring Friends School. Special consideration
may be given to members of The Religious Society of Friends.

Sandy Spring Friends School does not discriminate on the basis
of race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, gender, sexual
orientation, gender identity, or a person’s status as a qualified
candidate with a disability in administration of its educational
program, admission policies, financial aid program, staff hiring,
and other school-administered programs.

Please submit a cover letter, resume, completed application, and
three professional references by selecting the
link.