uAspire Chief Development Officer

ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION

A college graduate is 2.2 times more likely to secure employment and can expect to earn 1.8 times more income than someone with a high school education. Despite these promising prospects, data from the National Student Clearinghouse shows that only 28% of students from low-income high schools graduate from college within six years. Addressing disparities like student loan debt and creating more accessible and affordable higher education options is crucial to leveling the playing field and fostering true economic mobility for all.

Since 1985, uAspire has focused its work on helping students have equitable access to postsecondary education so that they can build the life that they envision. Our mission is to improve the economic mobility of underrepresented communities by creating financial solutions to diverse educational pathways, focusing on five key priorities: student advising, training and technical assistance, policy, consulting, and scholarship access. And we know it works: students who work with uAspire are 80% more likely to graduate from college than their peers.

In 2023-24 uAspire impacted over 2 million low-income, first gen students. We achieved that by:

• Advising over 10,500 high school and college students across Massachusetts, California and New York, and supporting an additional 4,200 students through our help desks and virtual webinar series
• Training over 6,900 school counselors and program staff on college affordability and financial aid impacting over 917,000 students
• Helping over 1.2 million students through newly implemented policies making financial aid more equitable, simple and transparent
• Supporting 14 educational partners through our consulting practice impacting over 240,000 students
• Investing over $360,000 in scholarships and emergency aid so that students can continue on with their education

With a dedicated staff of 70 professionals and an annual budget of $11 million, we consistently strive to make higher education accessible to underrepresented communities by reshaping systems and access points that will unlock financial aid dollars, create new solutions to affordable educational pathways, and help improve the economic mobility of the students and families we are here to support.

ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY

We seek a bold, enterprising, and synergistic leader to join our team as our Chief Development Officer (CDO). The CDO is a key member of our Executive Team and plays a pivotal role in bringing philanthropic resources to uAspire so that we can achieve the ambitious goals and impact set under our current strategic plan. The CDO is responsible for overseeing the strategic direction and management of all fundraising and development activities. This position will directly supervise the Senior Vice President of Development and the Senior Vice President of Institutional Giving. Ideal candidates will bring achievements as a “door opener and deal closer,” with success in cultivating and securing five, six and seven figure gifts and demonstrated strength in fostering a collaborative, inclusive, and productive team environment.

We seek individuals who can connect, build bridges, and work collaboratively. The CDO will be a culture carrier with a passion for uAspire's mission, a respect for a diverse and inclusive work environment, and commitment to moving the organization forward through modeling collaboration, teamwork, challenge and celebration.

The CDO reports to uAspire’s Chief Executive Officer, Jaclyn Piñero.

MAJOR FUNCTIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

As Chief Development Officer, you will be responsible for the following threads of work:

Team Leadership and Management

• Serve as a trusted advisor to the CEO on fundraising strategy and organizational sustainability.
• The Executive Team (ET) is the CDO’s first team. The CDO will relentlessly collaborate and partner with their ET colleagues to prioritize the organization’s collective goals and objectives.
• Mobilize the Development team by sharing ambitious, inspiring, and compelling approaches to deepen and grow organizational impact and sustainability, while actively participating in frontline fundraising alongside team members.
• Be accountable for the organization's fundraising performance, maintaining a personal portfolio of major donors while coaching team members to achieve their individual and collective goals.
• Set a clear strategic direction and guide the Development team, setting expectations to ensure the team is driving forward organization-wide strategies and meeting or exceeding their goals.
• Foster a collaborative and results-oriented culture within the Executive and Development teams that embraces teamwork, transparency, seamless communication, and mentorship rolling up your sleeves to work alongside team members while providing guidance and support for their growth.

Fundraising and Earned Revenue Strategy and Execution

• Represent uAspire in external-facing work with donors, partners and other stakeholder communities and partner with the CEO and other organizational leaders to serve as a passionate advocate for uAspire's mission.
• Develop and implement a comprehensive fundraising strategy that aligns with uAspire’s strategic plan and mission, ensuring revenue growth across multiple channels
• Secure dollars, cultivate and steward critical relationships through a defined portfolio of board members, corporate partners, foundation and individual funders, and other strategic revenue partnerships, to reach organizational growth and sustainability goals.
• Lead the building, implementation, and adoption of systems and practices that support intra- and inter-departmental collaboration, integration, communication, and relationship building to meet/exceed annual fundraising goals.
• Partner closely with the Chief Impact Officer and Chief Knowledge Officer to strategically align impact models, services, and innovation opportunities with funding opportunities.
• Instill a culture of philanthropy throughout uAspire, ensuring all staff members understand their role in the organization’s philanthropic success.
• Effectively engage the Board of Directors via the Development Committee to provide ongoing support and engagement in the areas of growth, community partnerships and resource development.
• Develop and manage the Development department budget, ensuring strategic investments and responsible fiscal controls and stewardship are maintained.
• Monitor, analyze and report out fundraising data and key performance indicators to assess progress towards fundraising goals.

Organizational Leadership

• Build and sustain excellent relationships both within and external to uAspire.
• Nurture a transparent and compassionate culture where staff feels able to bring their full selves to work, supported and cared for personally and professionally, and able to productively and openly engage in critical conversations.
• Uphold and build on our ongoing work on diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging.

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE

We understand that people gain skills through a variety of professional, personal, educational, and volunteer experiences. We encourage candidates to review the key responsibilities and qualifications below. If you believe you have the transferable skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of this role, we encourage you to apply.

• Progressive senior-level leadership experience with a proven track record of successfully leading, managing, and growing outcomes-based fundraising departments, preferably within the educational, nonprofit or philanthropic sectors.
• Success in and passion for fundraising that is demonstrated in a commitment to maintaining current funders, a zest for cultivating new donors, an ability to generate new revenue streams, and a history of successfully taking organizations to the next level of sustained philanthropic support.
• Commitment and experience to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging best practices and continuous learning. An enterprise-level orientation to effectively support the Advancement team while prioritizing the continued growth and direction of the organization.
• Thrives in a lean, fast-paced, highly collaborative, and entrepreneurial environment; with the integrity, wisdom, persistence, and humor necessary to address the practicalities of a constantly evolving, dynamic organization.
• A management style that combines respectful collaboration with disciplined productivity.
• Exceptional oral and written communication, networking and public engagement skills, including the ability to adapt style and approach to diverse constituencies and needs.
• Ability to build sustainable and productive partnerships with nonprofits, philanthropic partners, academic institutions, and city and state governments.
• Ability to compel others to action as a key storyteller of our path to impact, priorities for growth and ongoing contributions to the communities and young people we serve.
• Experience with advocacy, relevant public policy, and systems reform efforts.