Development Associate, Alumni Engagement and Volunteers

The Steward School seeks a Development Associate, Alumni Engagement and Volunteers with excellent administrative, project management, and fundraising skills with a high degree of organization, attention to detail, and the ability to think critically. This is a full-time, fully benefited position reporting to the Director of Development.

The primary responsibility of the Development Associate, Alumni Engagement and Volunteers position is to create a robust program for engaging the School’s alumni. This position will create and execute a strategic plan for supporting the School’s alumni that instills pride in Steward, connects alumni to each other and back to the School in meaningful ways.

 Primary Duties and Responsibilities

• Create and implement a strategic alumni engagement plan for the School’s alumni through special events, communications, volunteer activities, and other programming.
• Identify, cultivate, and engage potential alumni leaders in the life of the School as speakers, volunteers, hosts, committee members, board members, and donors.
• Make personal and direct solicitations (Annual Fund, specific campaigns/projects) of Alumni and Alumni Parents via face-to-face meetings, phone calls, personal mail, and email.
• Manage and oversee Almabase (Alumni directory), meeting all benchmarks for growth.
• Engage and inform alumni on a regular basis in a strategic, innovative, and personal manner through individual meetings, affinity groups, Enouncements, social media, the Colonnade, and other forms of communication.
• Manage and oversee the activity of the Alumni Board, board committees, and class agent program, including meeting coordination, financial management, membership recruitment and retention, and event coordination.
• Lead all alumni events, including Reunion Weekend events, Alumni Inspiration Day, Alumni Achievement Award, alumni affinity groups and activities, seasonal socials, and regional visits.
• Work with Development colleagues to create an alumni annual fund giving strategy, including recruitment and training of alumni volunteers. Work with ADOD on fundraising strategy for reunion classes and special groups.
• Lead all engagement with the current senior class. This would include all senior-related events up to graduation day. Work with Upper School Administration on Senior Year Engagement Plan, including programming and events.
• Manage and plan the activities of the Student Philanthropy Initiative club.
• Serve as lead for all alumni communications in coordination with marketing, including quarterly newsletters, event invitations and reminders, articles and highlights in the Colonnade (alumni news such as weddings, deaths, births, and promotions), alumni spotlights, online features, and social media.
• Manage Steward alumni social media platforms including schedule of posting and creating all content for Steward School Alumni Association Facebook and StewardAlums Instagram.
• Work with the Director to create a method for tracking and analyzing alumni engagement programs. Analyze traditional engagement programs and seek innovative ways to further strengthen and support existing programs.
• Work with development colleagues to oversee the collection and verification of lost alumni and improve industry and employment information in the School’s database.
• Benchmark with peer institutions to determine best practices to engage alumni in impactful and cost-effective ways.
• Assists with all special scholarship programs, including donor solicitation, recognition, and coordination of scholarship donor events.
• Handles correspondence, mailings, publications, and invitations associated with the Alumni Board and all alumni events and alumni stewardship.
• Other duties as assigned.

Other Duties and Responsibilities

• Maintain communication with the Director on programmatic progress and activity.
• Serve as a strategic member of the Development team supporting all office functions/events/campaigns.
• Work collaboratively with the Director, Assistant Director of Development, Development Associate, Auxiliary Groups and Volunteers, Events Coordinator, Development Special Projects Coordinator, Marketing & Communications, Admissions, and Business & Finance to achieve overall development goals.
• Stay current with stewardship best practices and create and implement a program that supports fundraising efforts.
• Ability to run accurate reports, lists, and queries in Raiser’s Edge to support development activity.
• Directs, coordinates, and supervises the activities of personnel, volunteers, and vendors as required to successfully execute assigned events.
• Creates event reports noting attendance, profit and loss statements, and general event synopsis.
• Compiles and prepares reports, correspondence, forms, and other related documents, which include memos and meeting minutes.
• Answers general development office phone and greets development office visitors.