Associate Director, Donor Relations and Advancement Communications

MISSION

For more than 150 years, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) has been a leader in educating the world's most influential artists, designers and scholars. Located in downtown Chicago with a fine arts graduate program consistently ranking among the top four graduate fine arts programs in the nation by U.S. News and World Report, SAIC provides an interdisciplinary approach to art and design as well as world-class resources, including the Art Institute of Chicago Museum, on-campus galleries and state-of-the-art facilities. SAIC's undergraduate, graduate and post-baccalaureate students have the freedom to take risks and create the bold ideas that transform Chicago and the world-as seen through notable alumni and faculty such as Michelle Grabner, David Sedaris, Elizabeth Murray, Richard Hunt, Georgia O'Keeffe, Cynthia Rowley, Nick Cave, and LeRoy Neiman.
We offer a competitive, comprehensive benefits package:

• Generous paid time off
• Paid holidays (up to 14 days)
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Generous parental, caregiver, and medical leave benefits
• Competitive retirement plan (up to 9% matching contribution)
• Tuition remission and Tuition Exchange Program
• Great employee discounts
• Complimentary general admission to participating cultural institutions

Salary Grade 8

BASIC FUNCTION

The Associate Director, Donor Relations and Advancement Communications, is a key content development expert and donor relations consultant for the Office of Advancement, partnering with colleagues to develop effective storytelling that connects with individual and institutional donors' motivations for giving and shares impact of philanthropy at all levels. As a key member of the Donor Relations, Advancement Communications, and Events team, the Associate Director plays a key role in enhancing the overall stewardship and engagement of donors to SAIC.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Creates, edits, and repurposes content that engages, educates, stewards, and cultivates current individual, institutional, and alumni donors for organizational fundraising initiatives and priorities under guidance from the Director, Donor Relations, Advancement Communications, and Events
• Serves as key partner to the Director of Corporate, Foundation and Government Relations to develop narrative content for proposals, reports, and other stewardship and cultivation materials
• Collaborates with internal partners across the organization and department to develop key messages for various programs and engagement plans for top prospects
• Serves as the primary liaison for the Office of Advancement to the School's Office of Marketing and Communications
• Manages multiple projects simultaneously and keeps a comprehensive plan of all work in progress
• Develops and maintains positive working relationships with School leadership and colleagues, including but not limited to colleagues in Finance, Student Financial Services, Marketing and Communications, President's Office, and others
• Manages development and revision of department resources including but not limited to case statements, templates, and messaging framework
• Manages project assignments for a student worker
• Performs other related work as needed to support the goals and priorities of the department

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Minimum 3-5 years of experience in non-profit management, consulting, grant writing, journalism, or related field required
• Bachelor's degree required
• Experience managing multiple projects from inception to execution demonstrating exceptional time management, research, focus on overall messaging, and cross departmental communication required
• Experience managing confidential information with discretion and tact required
• Experience creating content for a variety of audiences and mediums strongly preferred
• Excellent writing skills and strong attention to detail
• Outstanding interpersonal and communication skills characterized by the ability to listen, speak, and write effectively
• Work collegially and collaboratively in a team setting
• Self-motivated with the ability to take initiative
• Demonstrated strong project management skills prioritizing workflow and independently follow through with collaborators
• Experience with frontline fundraising preferred
• Experience using Raiser's Edge and Adobe InDesign strongly preferred
• Demonstrated interest in the Arts and the mission of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago

If you happen to have a portfolio of previous work to share, we welcome your submission. We will be asking for a writing prompt of the candidates that move forward in the interview process.
CLOSING STATEMENT
The Art Institute of Chicago is an Equal Opportunity Employer that recruits, hires and promotes qualified individuals without regard to race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, ancestry, veteran status or citizenship. The Institute complies with federal and state disability laws and makes reasonable accommodations for applicants and employees with disabilities. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, please contact the Department of Human Resources at apply_help@artic.edu.
UNION INFO
This position is part of a bargaining unit represented by AFSCME Council 31