Staff Writer

University Overview

The University of Pennsylvania, the largest private employer in Philadelphia, is a world-renowned leader in education, research, and innovation. This historic, Ivy League school consistently ranks among the top 10 universities in the annual U.S. News & World Report survey. Penn has 12 highly-regarded schools that provide opportunities for undergraduate, graduate and continuing education, all influenced by Penn’s distinctive interdisciplinary approach to scholarship and learning. As an employer Penn has been ranked nationally on many occasions with the most recent award from Forbes who named Penn one of America’s Best Large Employers in 2023.

Penn offers a unique working environment within the city of Philadelphia. The University is situated on a beautiful urban campus, with easy access to a range of educational, cultural, and recreational activities. With its historical significance and landmarks, lively cultural offerings, and wide variety of atmospheres, Philadelphia is the perfect place to call home for work and play.

The University offers a competitive benefits package that includes excellent healthcare and tuition benefits for employees and their families, generous retirement benefits, a wide variety of professional development opportunities, supportive work and family benefits, a wealth of health and wellness programs and resources, and much more.

Posted Job Title

Staff Writer

Job Profile Title

Staff Writer B

Job Description Summary

The central Development and Alumni Relations (DAR) Stewardship Communications team is the primary producer of donor-related correspondence for high-level University leadership, providing personalized communications that maintain and expand superior donor relations and meet the University’s fundraising and engagement goals. To provide consistent, customized, and informed leadership communications, the team maintains a robust tracking system and standardized procedures and must carefully manage internal relationships with frontline fundraisers, prospect managers, and development officers across the University. In addition to coordinating school or center-specific correspondence, the Stewardship Communications team partners with them to manage broad-based, donor-recognition projects and donor-segmented publications.
Stewardship Communications (SC) staff writers spend much of their time writing diverse correspondence, primarily for the University’s President and DAR’s Vice President. This process requires excellence in writing, but also attention to detail to maintain the SC correspondence tracking system, inputting, updating, and logging out daily letter assignments. SC writers also manage donor-related data and work with software to produce undergraduate scholarship reports on an annual cycle. Using donor reporting software and/or in collaboration with designers in the Marketing and Communications team, SC writers may also work on the development of other donor impact reports and personalized stewardship items that include visual storytelling approaches (such as photo reels or video) in addition to writing.

Job Description

Major Duties and Responsibilities:

• Research, compose, edit, and proofread timely and personalized correspondence for the University’s President and DAR’s Vice President, including gift acknowledgments, condolences, personal greetings, event follow-up notes, etc.
• Copyedit and proofread work of other SC writers and some external partners
• Become proficient in all procedures unique to SC’s correspondence and scholarship stewardship processes, particularly assigning and completing leadership correspondence and maintaining accurate records within SC’s letter tracking system and the scholarship database.
• Provide writing and project-management support to package annual reports for endowed scholarships.
• Support the production of other stewardship-related communications materials, including but not limited to annual impact reports for endowed and term funds, and special projects such as stewardship books or other personalized visual storytelling elements.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications Required:

• A bachelor’s degree from accredited college or university and at least 2-3 years of professional writing and other communications experience or equivalent combination of education and experience required.
• Previous experience in donor stewardship or development communications a plus.
• Excellent research, writing, copyediting, and organizational skills.
• Experience with developing communications and templates that incorporate visual elements in addition to writing.
• Familiar with using database, spreadsheet, and other software programs, and comfortable with learning new technologies to support stewardship and donor relations.
• Self-motivated and self-directed, with ability to work effectively as a member of a team and independently.
• Has ability to meet deadlines in what is periodically a high-volume/fast-paced production environment and can manage unanticipated requests.

**Please provide a resume and cover letter to be considered for this role. Upload all documents in the “Resume/CV” section of the application prior to submission.**

Nature of Supervision Received and Exercised:

The Stewardship Communications staff writer reports directly to the Senior Director of Stewardship Communications and receives operational instruction from the Associate Director of Stewardship Communications. The SC writer has frequent contact with staff across Development and Alumni Relations, including the President’s Office, DAR’s Vice President’s Office, and central DAR fundraising offices, especially Principal Gifts and Undergraduate Financial Aid.

Job Location – City, State

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Department / School

Development and Alumni Relations

Pay Range

$43,919.00 – $60,000.00 Annual Rate

Salary offers are made based on the candidate’s qualifications, experience, skills, and education as they directly relate to the requirements of the position, as well as internal and market factors and grade profile. 

Affirmative Action Statement 
Penn adheres to a policy that prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, creed, national or ethnic origin, citizenship status, age, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected class.

Special Requirements 
Background check required after a conditional job offer is made. Consideration of the background check will be tailored to the requirements of the job.

University Benefits

• Health, Life, and Flexible Spending Accounts: Penn offers comprehensive medical, prescription, behavioral health, dental, vision, and life insurance benefits to protect you and your family’s health and welfare. You can also use flexible spending accounts to pay for eligible health care and dependent care expenses with pre-tax dollars.

• Tuition: Take advantage of Penn’s exceptional tuition benefits. You, your spouse, and your dependent children can get tuition assistance here at Penn. Your dependent children are also eligible for tuition assistance at other institutions.

• Retirement: Penn offers generous retirement plans to help you save for your future. Penn’s Basic, Matching, and Supplemental retirement plans allow you to save for retirement on a pre-tax or Roth basis. Choose from a wide variety of investment options through TIAA and Vanguard.

• Time Away from Work: Penn provides you with a substantial amount of time away from work during the course of the year. This allows you to relax, take vacations, attend to personal affairs, recover from illness or injury, spend time with family—whatever your personal needs may be.

• Long-Term Care Insurance: In partnership with Genworth Financial, Penn offers faculty and staff (and your eligible family members) long-term care insurance to help you cover some of the costs of long-term care services received at home, in the community or in a nursing facility. If you apply when you’re newly hired, you won’t have to provide proof of good health or be subject to underwriting requirements. Eligible family members must always provide proof of good health and are subject to underwriting.

• Wellness and Work-life Resources: Penn is committed to supporting our faculty and staff as they balance the competing demands of work and personal life. That’s why we offer a wide variety of programs and resources to help you care for your health, your family, and your work-life balance.

• Professional and Personal Development: Penn provides an array of resources to help you advance yourself personally and professionally.

• University Resources: As a member of the Penn community, you have access to a wide range of University resources as well as cultural and recreational activities. Take advantage of the University’s libraries and athletic facilities, or visit our arboretum and art galleries. There’s always something going on at Penn, whether it’s a new exhibit at the Penn Museum, the latest music or theater presentation at the Annenberg Center, or the Penn Relays at Franklin Field to name just a few examples. As a member of the Penn community, you’re right in the middle of the excitement—and you and your family can enjoy many of these activities for free.

• Discounts and Special Services: From arts and entertainment to transportation and mortgages, you’ll find great deals for University faculty and staff. Not only do Penn arts and cultural centers and museums offer free and discounted admission and memberships to faculty and staff. You can also enjoy substantial savings on other goods and services such as new cars from Ford and General Motors, cellular phone service plans, movie tickets, and admission to theme parks.

• Flexible Work Hours: Flexible work options offer creative approaches for completing work while promoting balance between work and personal commitments. These approaches involve use of non-traditional work hours, locations, and/or job structures.

• Penn Home Ownership Services: Penn offers a forgivable loan for eligible employees interested in buying a home or currently residing in West Philadelphia, which can be used for closing costs or home improvements.

• Adoption Assistance: Penn will reimburse eligible employees on qualified expenses in connection with the legal adoption of an eligible child, such as travel or court fees, for up to two adoptions in your household.

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To learn more, please visit: https://www.hr.upenn.edu/PennHR/benefits-pay