Associate Director of Major Gifts

About the Department

The University of Chicago Law School occupies a unique niche among this country's premier law schools. Located on a residential campus in one of America's great cities, UChicago Law offers a rigorous and interdisciplinary professional education that blends the study of law with the humanities, the social sciences, and the natural sciences. Students, faculty, and staff form a small, tightly knit community devoted to the life of the mind.

Job Summary

The Associate Director of Major Gifts is part of a team whose primary responsibility is the identification, cultivation, and solicitation of individual prospects capable of giving in excess of $100,000. The position will develop fund-raising strategies to secure major gifts from alumni and friends across an assigned set of regions. Frequent travel is required as is occasional work on weekends. The position reports to the Director of Major Gifts for the Law School.

Responsibilities

• Leads responsibility for a portfolio of prospects and donors with capacity to make gifts of $100,000 or more, executing a target of no less than 120 visits per year with prospects.
• Gathers data, assesses prospects, and develops strategies designed to realize the current and lifetime giving potential of individual prospects.
• Ensures consistent and appropriate contact, facilitates, or makes solicitations, and ensures effective stewardship through collaboration with colleagues.
• Makes persuasive verbal and written cases for supporting The University of Chicago Law School’s key programs and projects, effectively matching the interests of prospects to specific Law School priorities.
• Sets priorities for multiple short-term and long-term prospects based on goals for the Law School Major Gift team.
• Develops and implements tactics to meet individual and group goals.
• Leverages internal leaders of the Law School and University such as the Dean of the Law School, Associate Dean for External Affairs, faculty, Law School Council members, Trustees or President of the University to help further prospect strategies. Staffs these individuals in meetings, events and phone calls.
• Assists volunteers with their solicitation assignments, including accompanying them on their meetings with other prospects and donors.
• Develops and maintains strong relationships with Law School faculty, administrators, volunteers and University colleagues to ensure a coordinated approach to prospects and donors.
• Works closely with Planned Giving colleagues within the University and the Law School to close planned gifts to the Law School.
• Establishes fundraising goals and priorities based on department objectives, designs strategies to meet those goals, and monitors progress against goals.
• Identifies, analyzes, and qualifies donor interest to maximize giving. Helps with overall planning efforts for the University's most important prospects. Works independently to develop communication strategies for projects, including publications and public presentations.
• Performs other related work as needed.

Minimum Qualifications

Education:

Minimum requirements include a college or university degree in related field.

Work Experience:

Minimum requirements include knowledge and skills developed through 5-7 years of work experience in a related job discipline.

Preferred Qualifications

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree.

Experience:

• Successful fundraising or comparable experience strongly preferred. This may include work experience in nonprofit management, development, sales, alumni relations, marketing, public relations, or similar work experience.
• Demonstrated record of accomplishment in solicitation, the cultivation of prospective donors, or sales and client development strongly preferred.
• Prior campaign experience strongly preferred.

Preferred Competencies

• Ability to interact with high-level donors; a general level of comfort when dealing with high net worth individuals, and an ability to maintain discretion, and high levels of confidentiality, when dealing with significant benefactors.
• High level of competence with personal computers and software programs, especially Microsoft Office, for retrieving, organizing and researching appropriate donor/prospect information, as well as data gathering and manipulation.
• Demonstrated skill and knowledge of, or ability to learn quickly, the internal workings of the University as well as the technology tools available to the Law School through the University Office of Alumni Relations and Development, including Phoenix (the University's Donor Relationship Management System).
• Ability and willingness to quickly learn the Law School and the University's history, mission, demographics, faculty, current programs, departments, etc., as well as the University culture to be able to persuasively articulate how the University of Chicago and the Law School distinguishes itself from peer institutions.
• Strong interpersonal skills, both written and oral, as well as a high level of sophistication and maturity in social and professional settings.
• Ability to work collaboratively with colleagues in a team environment.

Working Conditions

• Ability and willingness to work evenings, occasional additional weeknight and weekend days.
• Ability to travel to assigned area, bi-monthly or more.
• This position is available for partially remote work based on business needs of the Law School.

Application Documents

• Resume/CV (required)
• Cover Letter (required)

When applying, the document(s) MUST be uploaded via the My Experience page, in the section titled Application Documents of the application.

Job Family

Alumni Relations & Development

Role Impact

Individual Contributor

Scheduled Weekly Hours

37.5

Drug Test Required

No

Health Screen Required

No

Motor Vehicle Record Inquiry Required

No

Pay Rate Type

Salary

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FLSA Status

Exempt

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Pay Range

$83,000.00 - $100,000.00

The included pay rate or range represents the University’s good faith estimate of the possible compensation offer for this role at the time of posting.

Benefits Eligible

Yes

The University of Chicago offers a wide range of benefits programs and resources for eligible employees, including health, retirement, and paid time off. Information about the benefit offerings can be found in the Benefits Guidebook.

Posting Statement

The University of Chicago is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity/Disabled/Veterans and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, age, status as an individual with a disability, military or veteran status, genetic information, or other protected classes under the law. For additional information please see the University's Notice of Nondiscrimination.

Staff Job seekers in need of a reasonable accommodation to complete the application process should call 773-702-5800 or submit a request via Applicant Inquiry Form.

We seek a diverse pool of applicants who wish to join an academic community that places the highest value on rigorous inquiry and encourages a diversity of perspectives, experiences, groups of individuals, and ideas to inform and stimulate intellectual challenge, engagement, and exchange.

All offers of employment are contingent upon a background check that includes a review of conviction history. A conviction does not automatically preclude University employment. Rather, the University considers conviction information on a case-by-case basis and assesses the nature of the offense, the circumstances surrounding it, the proximity in time of the conviction, and its relevance to the position.

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