Development and Communications Manager

Our Culture: Why work with us?

Our most valuable resource is our people--with a diversity of backgrounds, ideas, opinions, and life experiences. We have built a multidisciplinary and multicultural environment full of mission-driven people. We admire people who have forward thinking and sound judgment. Our leaders are transparent, accessible, authentic, and invest in their employees. Together we do meaningful work that is life-changing for our client community.

Who We Are:

The Project on Predatory Student Lending is the first legal services practice in the country focused solely on representing postsecondary students who were harmed by predatory practices in higher education and vocational training. Started at Harvard Law School in 2012, PPSL became an independent non-profit organization in August 2022. PPSL primarily uses impact litigation to further its mission of ending predatory practices in higher education. PPSL has prosecuted landmark litigation holding corporations and the government accountable for abusive and discriminatory actions and policies.

Our Mission:

To date, the Project on Predatory Student Lending has won cancellation of over $22 billion in student debt for over 1 million former students located throughout the United States. To learn more about our current cases, please visit our website, read news coverage of our work, and listen to our clients' experiences with predatory actors in higher education.

What's in it for you:

The Project on Predatory Student Lending’s Development and Communications Manager will raise funds and build new partnerships to support the work and expand the impact of PPSL.

• Salary: $70-90k per year, depending on experience
• Remote role: Candidate must be available to commute to Boston on occasion for meetings and in-person collaboration. Occasional other travel required.
• Excellent benefits: Unlimited vacation policy, paid parental leave, 80/20 split on health care costs, 5% match on 401k, $200/month remote work stipend

Essential Functions:

• In partnership with PPSL’s leadership team, design and implement a development plan focused on expanding foundation and individual donor support; assist with developing and achieving plan metrics
• Conduct prospect research and prepare donor profiles
• Coordinate development opportunities, ensuring proper communication, touch points, and verbal/written follow-up throughout the relationship building process
• Manage PPSL’s grant portfolio including proposals, reports, and tracking deliverables/activities, recognizing gifts
• Work closely with the Executive Director and Sr. Director of External Affairs & Strategy to organize and prepare for fundraising opportunities including scheduling and preparing for meetings with foundations and potential donors
• Responsible for all donor (current and perspective) outreach and communications initiatives, including case updates, newsletter, social media, and others; written communications products including annual impact reports, organizational overviews, programmatic updates
• Participate in communications activities including stakeholder communications, newsletters, website updates, one-pagers, blog posts, social media management under the direction of Sr. Director of External Affairs & Strategy and in collaboration with the external PR team
• Manage PPSL’s social media platforms in coordination with PPSL’s PR
• Participate in narrative building around client stories in collaboration with PPSL advocacy and PR teams.
• Design and execute fundraising and brand-building activities and events, specifically but not limited to donor-facing conferences and visibility opportunities.
• Maintain and update donor database in Salesforce, including individual donor housed in Givelify

Requirements and Qualifications:

• 5+ years of professional experience in development and/or communications roles
• Excellent writing and editing capabilities for the creation of persuasive materials including grant proposals, informational brochures, donor correspondence and electronic communications
• Proven record of accomplishment in fundraising, grant writing, research and solicitation of institutional foundations, corporate grants, individual donations
• Exceptional time management, project management (simultaneous with multiple projects) and organizational skills; proven ability to set up processes, and prioritize and manage multiple deliverables
• Ability to strongly represent PPSL in the public and engage with student borrowers, major donors, board members and other community stakeholders
• Press/media relations experience preferred
• Creative design expertise; experience with Canva preferred
• Superior attention to detail, including strong editing skills
• Demonstrated ability to work autonomously and effectively without close supervision
• Willingness to function effectively as a member of a team and to participate in activities that will contribute to the overall success of the organization
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office 365
• Experience with contact management systems (Salesforce or equivalent) and website platforms, (SquareSpace, Wordpress or equivalent)
• Experience managing multiple social media platforms
• Familiarity with national and local higher education and economic mobility funders preferred
• Excellent verbal communication skills, including the ability to facilitate meetings
• Self-starter, problem-solver, idea generator, responsive and collaborative team player, kind and compassionate individual who takes pride in their work and is committed to social justice
• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution or equivalent professional experience
• Occasional travel required