Job Details
Job Location
Regis College Campus - Weston, MA
Position Type
Full Time
Description
Position Overview
The Assistant Vice President of Development and Alumni Relations, (AVP) will play a key role as Regis concludes a strategic planning process with bold aspirations for its future while building on the College’s historic strengths as it prepares for its centennial in 2027.
Successful implementation of key points of the strategic plan will allow Regis College to build upon its commitment to a rigorous liberal arts and sciences education rooted in the Catholic tradition with a mission to serve to ‘thy dear neighbor without distinction.’ The AVP, in close collaboration with the Vice President for Institutional Advancement and other key institutional leaders, is charged with bringing strategic plans to fruition through an ambitious fundraising agenda. An articulate and highly visible representative of the university, the AVP will oversee alumni reunion programs, local and regional alumni events, affinity group events, and student philanthropy. Integral to the AVP’s work will be creating and executing meaningful programming to increase alumni engagement.
The position requires excellent leadership skills with the ability to lead, inspire, and mentor staff and alumni volunteers, and manage development teams charged with engaging and encouraging giving among Regis alumni, family and friends. The AVP will play an essential role in preparing Regis for its next campaign. The AVP will envision a bold future and identify, outline, and communicate the steps to realize goals. Working closely with the Vice President to identify strategies for success, the AVP will join a motivated team with long-serving, highly dedicated and successful staff.
Specific Responsibilities
IA Leadership
- Provide daily management of the development and alumni relations offices; support the Vice President in planning, evaluating and improving College fundraising activities.
- In consultation with the Vice President, evaluate key programs within development and donor engagement efforts to fulfill the mission of Regis.
- Work directly with the Vice President and directors to develop achievable goals with measurable strategic objectives.
- In collaboration with VP, oversee all major processes and procedures within the office of institutional advancement, (IA) to ensure the department runs as efficiently and effectively as possible.
- Develop annual budget recommendations to maximize ROI. Oversee budget management for alumni relations and annual giving, prepare financial reports for the Vice President including accurate profit and loss statements for each event; expend funds as authorized and monitor/control expenditures.
- Oversee annual giving efforts and help foster a culture of philanthropy.
- Provide strategic oversight of programming as it relates to leadership giving to grow major gift pipelines, inclusive of major gift prospect strategy.
- Play a leadership role in the planning, fundraising, and execution of the annual fundraising Gala in support of student scholarships.
- Represent IA at university wide meetings at VP’s discretion; communicate information and best practices to and from IA; ensure integration and coordination with university policies; serve as a resource for members of the IA team.
Alumni/Donor Events
- Responsible for building and cultivating lifelong relationships between the College and its 18,000+ alumni; envisioning and managing appealing and diverse programming and events.
- Strategically develop, implement, and evaluate all IA events and programs, which are designed to identify, inform, and involve alumni and friends of Regis, with the goal to increase engagement and philanthropic support.
- Oversee reunion weekend, reunion giving, strategic creation of regional alumni chapters, affinity group events, student philanthropy, as well as the strategic leveraging of alumni volunteers.
Portfolio Management
- Manage all aspects of a portfolio including strategies for discovery, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of 75-100 prospective donors.
- Responsibilities in this area include personal visits and other forms of engagement to move prospects through the gift cycle, promptly submitting reports and other essential follow-up activities.
- Work creatively and strategically to secure annual gifts and to develop a pipeline of alumni to be considered as future major gift and planned giving prospects.
Annual Giving
- Develop strategy in collaboration with Advancement Communications and Donor Relations to produce solicitations to support annual giving, with plans to increase donor acquisition, retention and gift upgrades.
- With a modest level of alumni participation, the College is seeking to increase giving among all classes, with recent graduates being the major donors of the future.
- Monitor annual giving results, adjust strategies and produce reports to maximize efforts and create a foundation for future philanthropic results.
- Promote, grow and steward giving societies celebrating loyalty (Higgins Society), leadership giving (1927) and former board of trustee members (Domitilla Society).
- Serve as project manager for annual Giving Day.
Other Duties And Responsibilities
- Manage projects assigned by the VP.
- Contribute to a pleasant and positive work environment and motivate others to do the same.
- Contribute to the overall IA efforts and mission of Regis College.
Supervisory Responsibilities
- Supervise Assistant Director of Alumni Relations and Annual Giving, Associate Director of Advancement Communications and Donor Stewardship. Carries out supervisory responsibilities in accordance with Regis College’s policies and applicable laws. Responsibilities include interviewing, hiring, and training employees; planning, assigning, and directing work; appraising performance; rewarding and disciplining employees; addressing complaints and resolving problems.
Qualifications
Skills/Experience/Training Required:
- Duties require a minimum of five years of related experience in the field of institutional advancement, and a bachelor’s degree in a related field; a master’s degree is preferred, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
- Excellent speaking and presentation skills with technical proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook), databases, Zoom, Teams, etc.
- Strong critical thinking and problem-solving skills, ability to listen to and process information in an unbiased manner and make sound recommendations.
- Experience in working effectively with all constituents, maintaining strict confidentiality of sensitive information, and respectfully partnering with colleagues.
- A proven track record of success with individual, major, and planned gifts with responsibility to meet goals.
- Successful experience utilizing data and analytics to inform strategy.
- Ability to effectively motivate others with exemplary collaboration and communication skills.
- Ability to provide strong customer service while adhering to established policies and procedures.
- Considerable knowledge of business English, grammatical construction, spelling, punctuation, and vocabulary and the ability to effectively write, clearly conveying ideas.
- Ability to uphold the University’s commitment to inclusive excellence in a diverse educational community.
Working Conditions/Physical Demands
- Normal office environment, not subject to extremes in temperature, noise, odors, etc.
- May spend extended periods at terminal, on telephone, or operating other office machines, requiring eye-hand coordination and finger dexterity.
- May be required to lift and carry files, documents, records, etc.
The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to do this job. The above is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities and duties required.
External and internal applicants, as well as position incumbents who become disabled as defined under the Americans With Disabilities Act, must be able to perform the essential job functions (as listed) either unaided or with the assistance of a reasonable accommodation to be determined by management on a case-by-case basis.
In employment, as in education, Regis College is committed to equal opportunity and affirmative action. Regis does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, religion, creed, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, ethnic or national origin, ancestry, citizenship, marital or parental status, physical or mental disability, genetic information, pregnancy, veteran’s status, membership in uniformed services or any other protected status.
