University of North Carolina Wilmington has just wrapped up a year of celebrating their 70th anniversary and have much to be proud of.  UNCW has been a part of the UNC system since 1969 and is currently the fastest growing university in the system with over 16,000 undergrads.

The institution is in Wilmington, North Carolina which is known as a gateway to Cape Fear Coast beaches. City residents enjoy living between Cape Fear River and the beautiful NC coast line.  Downtown Wilmington boasts a lovely Historic District, a Riverwalk lined with restaurants, galleries and shops and is the home to Battleship North Carolina.

This role will be primarily aligned with UNCW’s College of Health and Human Services, coming at a time of excitement for the College, which is on a significant growth trajectory in enrollments, graduations and new programs. Highlighting that excitement and growth was the January 2018, groundbreaking for a new Allied Health building known as Veterans Hall, a 145k square foot building that will allow the university to better educate future healthcare practitioners and scientists and enhance services for military-affiliated students.  The innovative new facility will house existing degree programs in health and human services and provide the opportunity to develop new programs such as healthcare administration/analytics, speech language pathology and physician assistant studies. It will also include labs to support teaching, research and community engagement.  Veterans Hall will also be the new home of the College of Health and Human Services and will include laboratory and classroom space for several of the College of Arts and Sciences’ chemistry programs, including pharmaceutical science. Central to the design of Veterans Hall is its ability to provide transformational experiences for faculty and students - and engage with the larger community, which are hallmarks of UNCW’s standing as a leading comprehensive regional University.

The division of University Advancement responds to the needs of a variety of external and internal constituents in achieving its primary goals to: 1) Increase private financial support for prioritized university programs and activities, and 2) Improve external relations for the university through effective board management and donor stewardship. The division strives to raise funds, as outlined by the Chancellor’s vision statement and strategic plan, from the private sector to further the university mission of pursuing the resources that will enable our faculty and students to excel, and becoming intensely regionally engaged. In doing so, the division plans strategically to facilitate the identification, cultivation, solicitation and stewardship of all constituencies, and seeks to positively promote the university. The division’s fundraising efforts are enhanced by effective partnerships with components of the campus community as well as external audiences including alumni, parents, corporations, foundations, legislators, volunteer board members and friends. Development areas include major gifts, planned giving, corporate and foundation relations, annual giving, UNCW constituent liaison and alumni relations. Prospect management and research, advancement services, and external and donor relations are support services for the fundraising activities of the division.

The Director of Development for Major Gifts will function as a member of a team of development and advancement professionals and a member of the University Advancement staff. This work involves planning, designing, implementing, and evaluating strategies to obtain outright and deferred, general operating, endowment, and capital funds for the university. Reporting to the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Major Gifts, under the leadership of the Vice Chancellor for University Advancement, this position will work with the senior administration and volunteers to identify, cultivate, solicit and steward prospective major donors. The responsibilities of the Director of Development for Major Gifts include management of UNCW’s development efforts as they relate to prospect identification, major donor relationship nurturing, solicitation and stewardship in order to reach the strategic and foremost fundraising objectives of the university.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• The Director of Development for Major Gifts will function as a member of a team of development and advancement professionals and a member of the University Advancement staff. This work involves planning, designing, implementing, and evaluating strategies to obtain outright and deferred, general operating, endowment, and capital funds for the university.
• Reporting to the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Major Gifts, under the leadership of the Vice Chancellor for University Advancement, this position will work with the senior administration and volunteers to identify, cultivate and solicit prospective major donors.
• Assisting in the management of UNCW’s development efforts as they relate to prospect identification, major donor relationship nurturing, solicitation and stewardship in order to reach the strategic and foremost fundraising objectives of the university.
• Although this position does not have any primary responsibility for the formulation of institutional policy, the Director of Development for Major Gifts will be an integral part of the advancement staff and work closely with other development directors within the development unit and leadership of the division.
• This position fits into the development (major gifts) unit within the division focusing exclusively on front line fundraising, in the major gift arena, focusing on securing gifts of $25,000 and above. Implementation and interpretation of institutional policy will be related to division policies, practices and procedures related to prospect management, solicitation tracking, gift processing, and development of donor strategy.
• Responsible for directing his or her activity in a way that coincides with the resources that are available, recognizing good stewardship of university resources.
• Due to access to prospect and donor financial information, it is essential for development directors to uphold the highest level of privacy and ethics standards at all times.
• This position will not have official personnel and financial management responsibilities but is expected to treat administrative assistants professionally and in an exemplary leadership capacity as with all advancement and UNCW colleagues.
• The incumbent will likely be occasionally asked to provide feedback as to the performance of support staff. No direct or indirect reports are anticipated for this position. See organization chart.
• The Director of Development for Major Gifts will be an integral part of the advancement staff and work closely with other development directors within the development unit and leadership of the division.
• This position fits into the development (major gifts) unit within the division focusing exclusively on front line fundraising, in the major gift arena, focusing on securing gifts of $25,000 and above. Extensive interaction with external constituencies are a significant part of the responsibilities of this position.

Education and Experience

Minimum of a Bachelor’s degree required, Master’s degree preferred, with a minimum of a 5-year demonstrated track record of public or private development efforts including mastery of the fundamental principles and techniques of successful fundraising as they pertain to identification, cultivation, solicitation and stewardship of individual prospects, preferably in the non-profit or higher educational sector.

Essential Skills, Requirements and Preferred Qualifications

Demonstrated proficiency and experience in managing relationships with high-level prospects in an effort to secure major gifts; experience with the concepts of moves management as well as a mastery of the fundamentals of major gifts fundraising; a basic understanding of planned giving concepts, and an ability to navigate internal processes and structures to the advancement of relationships with donors.

Superior written and verbal communication, interpersonal, relationship building, creative problem solving skills and the ability to initiate and collaborate with others, at all levels.

Demonstrated ability to work interdependently and independently in a collaborative environment is vital.

Computer literacy, using Microsoft Word, Excel and Outlook, is fundamental for word processing and data entry associated with the writing, reporting and communication functions of this position.

Competency in navigation and use of the university’s database information systems and other development related software is essential.

The incumbent must possess a passion for service excellence, integrity, a positive outlook, a strong work ethic, be self-motivated and committed to high performance and dedication to the value of higher education.

APPLY HERE: https://jobs.uncw.edu/postings/12980

UNCW has retained Capital Development Services to assist with recruitment for this position. Candidates must provide a cover letter, resume, and list of three references.  All materials will be kept confidential.  Additional inquiries may be directed to Jen Tozier at Capital Development Services, 336-747-0133 x 208.