Posted: August 08, 2011

Position Summary

Since 2005, Teach For America-Greater New Orleans set out and achieved one of the most ambitious growth plans in the organization's history. Over the past three years, the number of incoming teachers increased from 80 annually to over 200 annually, culminating in our current corps size of over 400 teachers. As a result, the number of alumni living and leading in this region has also quadrupled from 100 to over 500 this year. This growth required increasing our operating budget from a approximately $1 million annually to over $9 million annually. As a result of this growth, over 1 in every 3 students attending public school across our region are now taught by dedicated, convicted educators that have the ability to empower them to access the opportunities they want and deserve in life.

As we look to the next five years, the best contribution that Teach For America can continue to make to impact student achievement in our region is human capital, both in terms of excellent corps member teachers but more significantly in terms of alumni leaders. Teach For America's 2015 regional vision focuses on accelerating our impact in Greater New Orleans by ensuring that all of our teachers are highly effective leaders in the classroom, thus altering the life path of the students they reach everyday. Simultaneously, we are firmly committed to maintaining our current corps size of 400 corps members as that is the fuel that will continue to build the leadership of our alumni base. If we are able to continue on this trajectory, we project that by 2015, Greater New Orleans will double the amount of alumni leaders and will boast 1,000 alumni living and working in the region.

The Director of Individual Giving (DIG) will drive our campaign to raise approximately $8,000,000 over the next 5 years from individuals in support of our overall goal to raise $36,500,000 by 2015 in operating revenue. The DIG will work closely with the Managing Director, Development (MDD) and Executive Director (ED) to set and execute high level individual giving strategy and will be responsible for: creating and executing an operational plan in order to meet fundraising goals; developing strategies and cultivation plans for a portfolio of donors and prospects; and managing up to the ED and MDD to cultivate, solicit and steward donors. To be successful, a DIG must: be a critical thinker with a keen understanding of what motivates others; display sound judgment in prioritizing actions based on outcomes; and be able to get results through others. This individual must also be exceptionally organized with strong attention to detail and a high bar for quality. The DIG will report directly to the MDD.

About Teach For America

Teach For America is the national corps of top recent college graduates who commit to teach for at least two years in urban and rural public schools and become lifelong leaders in the effort to expand educational opportunity. Our mission is to build the movement to eliminate educational inequity by enlisting the nation's most promising future leaders in the effort.

In the 2010-2011 school year, more than 8,200 first- and second-year Teach For America corps members will be teaching in 39 regions across the United States. Since 1990, Teach For America corps members have reached more than 3 million students. More than 20,000 Teach For America alumni are working in education and many other fields, where they continue to advocate for students and families in low-income communities. While only one in six corps members say they were interested in the teaching profession before joining Teach For America, nearly two-thirds of our alumni remain in the field of education.

Teach For America's culture and work is grounded in and guided by a deep commitment to pursuing true transformational change for students growing up in low-income communities. It is a leadership development organization – committed to fostering staff members, corps members and alumni who establish a clear and bold vision for the future, set measurable and ambitious goals, work purposefully and strategically to achieve that vision, always operate with a deep sense of possibility and with perseverance, and define broadly what is within its control to solve. It is an organization committed to its people, to diversity and inclusion, and to operating with respect and humility toward the other important people and organizations working to advance the cause of educational excellence for all children.

We are a high-growth, outcomes-oriented organization, with a $220 million budget and over 1,500 staff. In 2011, we were named a Fortune 100 Best Company to Work For. We operate in an entrepreneurial environment, maintain focus on quantitative measures, and are committed to continuous improvement.

Responsibilities

Responsibilities will include, but are not limited to:

Collaborating with the ED and MDD to create and execute the individual giving strategic and operational plans with a focus on retaining current supporters at a high level and increasing both the size of the donor base and the average contribution level; thereby ensuring that Greater New Orleans maximizes opportunities, meets annual funding goals and builds long-term sustainability within this revenue stream

Analyzing historical and market data to support the ED and MDD in setting ambitious yet feasible revenue, donor quantity and retention goals and setting interim benchmarks

Regularly tracking progress to goal, in part by managing accurate and up-to-date records and data on donors; conducting analysis to identify what is driving and impeding progress; and working with the MDD and ED to develop and implement solutions to address gaps

Prioritizing key actions for the ED and/or MDD to take in cultivating, soliciting and stewarding donors through external meetings, events and correspondence and preparing/supporting them to execute

Managing the region's portfolio of individual donors and prospects by:

Developing pitches, strategies and tactical plans to achieve goals for different donor segments

Creating a tailored cultivation or stewardship plan for every prospect and donor that results in successful retention of current donors and that maximizes the giving potential of both prospects and current donors

Producing consistent, high quality donor communication materials and creating compelling opportunities for current and prospective donors to engage with our program (includes oversight of our Sponsor A Teacher campaign)

Conducting research to build out our donor base

Overseeing the operational systems required to manage a high volume of donor cultivation, stewardship and research to ensure efficiency and effectiveness

Developing the vision and managing the execution of events geared to individual giving donors and prospects

Cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding a portfolio of donors through external meetings, events, and correspondence

Qualifications

Candidate Profile and Experience Prerequisites

Bachelor's degree required

Minimum 3 years of experience preferred

Teach For America experience (staff or corps) OR experience working in Greater New Orleans education reform strongly preferred

Uncommon level of personal responsibility with exceptional goal orientation and a proven track record of success

Critical thinker who displays strong judgment in prioritizing problems to solve and opportunities to pursue

Highly organized with exceptional detail orientation and demonstrated ability to manage a high volume of work

Motivated by achieving results through others and able to manage superiors, peers, and direct reports towards outcomes

Keen understanding of the beliefs, contexts, and motivations of others

Strong verbal and written communicator

Customer service approach to donor management

Comfortable with and excited by managing in an entrepreneurial environment

Benefits and Salary

Salary for this position is competitive and depends on prior experience. In addition, a comprehensive benefits package is included.

Anti-Discrimination Policy and Commitment to Diversity

Teach For America seeks individuals of all ethnic and racial backgrounds to apply for this position. We are committed to maximizing the diversity of our organization, as we want to engage all those who can contribute to this effort.

Application Requirements and Process

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Please submit your resume and one-page cover letter with your application.

To link directly to this job listing, please use the following address http://teachforamerica.taleo.net/careersection/01/jobdetail.ftl?&job=11317