Job Title: Manager of Annual Fund and Alumni Relations
Department: Advancement
Reports to: Vice President for College Advancement
FLSA: Exempt
Location: On Site
Updated: April 2023
Kuyper College is seeking an energetic and committed Manager of Annual Fund and Alumni Relations to lead our efforts to engage alumni and donors, build relationships, and raise funds to support the College’s mission. As a Christian Bible College, we offer a unique educational experience focused on integrating learning, work, and service, providing a strong post graduate foundation for our students. The manager will play an important role in leading annual fund development efforts of the College to support students who will benefit from a Kuyper College experience. This is an exciting opportunity for someone who is passionate about Christian higher education and who wants to make a meaningful impact on the lives of our students by helping to keep an excellent Christian higher education affordable.
Summary: The manager through faithful service to accomplish the mission of Kuyper College is responsible for the overall success of the College’s annual fund campaign and alumni relations program. The manager directs and administers all aspects of annual fund fundraising. Working with the members of the Advancement Team, the manager will support relationship building with individuals, businesses, churches, and foundations, identify planned giving and major gift candidates, and support the success of the annual fund campaign. The manager also plans and develops strategies to enhance the alumni relations program for the purpose of promoting Kuyper College, expanding and enhancing the College’s image, and building long-lasting relationships.
Duties and Responsibilities:
Develops, in coordination with the VP for Advancement, a written master plan and calendar for all phases of annual fund giving.
Designs a compelling case for support and a comprehensive team strategy to ensure success of the annual fund campaign.
Utilizes appropriate fundraising vehicles to implement a successful annual fund campaign including, but not limited to, direct mail, email, social media, phone solicitations, events, group presentations and individual donor visits.
Manages direct mail programs and relationships with direct mail vendors.
Skilled at building and maintaining relationships with a diverse group of stakeholders, including individuals, businesses, churches, and foundations. Cultivates donor relationships from their beginnings throughout stewardship.
Ensures proper donor recognition and expressions of gratitude.
Coordinates special events including, but not limited to, Spring Celebration Gala, International Golf Outing, Scholarship Dinner and Legacy Society related events.
Builds relationships with alumni through innovative strategies to enhance alumni affinity with and support of the College.
Carefully manages the annual fund budget and maximizes resources to improve return on investment.
Conducts regular assessment of campaign approaches through analysis of donor database and campaign results and makes recommendations to improve donor engagement and campaign success.
Other duties as assigned.
Desired Qualifications:
Education:
A minimum of a bachelor’s degree or four years related experience or equivalent combination of education and experience.
Proficient with Google and Microsoft Office platforms.
Other Experience:
Experience with database segmentation and a keen understanding and ability to market the annual fund to different audiences.
Able to write clear and compelling direct mail copy and various forms of related material.
Knowledge and experience with various forms of fundraising.
Possess exceptional oral and written communication skills.
Proficient with Google and Microsoft Office platforms.
Able to regularly adjust strategy in response to trends.
Must be an independent and strategic thinker capable of understanding the full scope of projects while seeing individual tasks through to completion.
Must be project oriented, able to handle several tasks simultaneously, possessing an ability to prioritize multiple tasks under pressure while managing deadlines well.
Able to work as part of a team while taking ownership of personal tasks.
Kuyper College is a leading Ministry-Focused Christian Leadership College, educating and training Christian leaders for service through the integration of high-quality academic curriculum and a biblical, Reformed worldview.
Founded in 1939, and accredited by various regional and national agencies, Kuyper College offers a variety of ministry and professional academic majors. This is the first of seven foundational elements that make Kuyper a very unique college. At Kuyper we call the sum of these elements… "TheKee" or The Kuyper Education Experience.
Other elements of TheKee include: a continuous and intentional program of Spiritual Formation to help our students become mature in their faith; comprehensive Internship and Field-Education programs with nationally recognized organizations, where students apply the knowledge and skills they've acquired in the classroom to every-day situations; an International-Education program where students have the opportunity to satisfy requirements in one of several locations throughout the world; a multi-cultural, ethnic and multi-denominational Diversity program that embraces and promotes an environment where diversity thrives; a committed ...Faculty known for their subject matter expertise with a ratio of 1 faculty member for each 15 students; and a very affordable cost for tuition and room and board-on average $6000 less per year than comparable Christian colleges-making Kuyper an Exceptional Value.
Kuyper College is located on a beautiful campus eight miles from downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan-one of the top 50 metropolitan areas in the United States.
