Associate Director of Advancement Operations & Community Giving
17 days ago
Oakland
POSITION: Associate Director of Advancement Operations & Community Giving SCHOOL YEAR: 2026-2027 About Oakland School for the Arts Oakland School for the Arts (OSA) is a vibrant creative community rooted in Oakland’s rich cultural landscape. Serving 800 students in grades 6-12, OSA blends rigorous academics with artistic excellence, celebrating the unique voices and talents of each student. Diverse experiences make our teams stronger and help us better serve our equally diverse student population. We encourage all candidates interested in this opportunity, including Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), as well as candidates from historically underrepresented communities, to apply. All voices and perspectives matter here. Our Mission & Vision At OSA, we believe that education and the arts are powerful tools for transformation. Our mission is to prepare graduates for college and career through innovative arts education, inspiring them to shape the world with their unique voices. Our vision is generations of creative thinkers, authentic leaders, and problem-solvers who bring the essential value of the arts to every community. The Role OSA seeks a strategic, highly relational, and data-informed Associate Director of Advancement Operations & Community Giving to lead the operational and community fundraising infrastructure that supports OSA’s long-term philanthropic growth. This position serves as the operational engine of the Office of Advancement and Marketing, overseeing annual giving strategy, donor operations, advancement analytics, prospect research coordination, donor stewardship systems, and family/community engagement fundraising initiatives from strategy to detailed implementation. The Associate Director of Advancement Operations & Community Giving plays a central role in building a culture of philanthropy across the OSA community, with a particular focus on parents, grandparents, alumni families, faculty, staff, volunteers, and community donors. The role also supports the Director of Advancement and Marketing and Executive Director in cultivating and securing leadership gifts from families and community members, while ensuring the advancement office maintains strong operational systems, data integrity, reporting, and donor pipeline management, including administrative tasks. This position supervises advancement operations vendors and consultants, including the CRM/database management consultant, and works closely with school leadership, faculty, PTSA leadership, parent volunteers, and student leaders. The position reports to the Director of Advancement and Marketing and is a member of the Advancement leadership team. What You’ll Do Primary Priority: Fundraising & Community Giving Annual Fund Strategy & Execution • Design, implement, manage, and evaluate OSA’s comprehensive Annual Fund strategy with a focus on parent, grandparent, alumni family, faculty/staff, and community giving., • Develop annual and multi-year strategies to increase donor participation, donor retention, average gift size, and donor pipeline growth., • Execute integrated, multi-channel fundraising campaigns across direct mail, email, social media, digital giving, text outreach, events, and peer-to-peer fundraising., • Support the Director of Advancement and Marketing in cultivation and solicitation strategies for leadership annual gifts and community-based major gifts, implementing tasks as assigned., • Develop and manage monthly giving and recurring donor programs., • Support annual fundraising events and donor engagement activities in partnership with arts departments, parent volunteers, and external vendors to include many logistical and administrative tasks especially related to the donor CRM., • Produce annual giving materials and donor communications in partnership with marketing and communications consultants., • Monitor fundraising results monthly and adjust strategies to ensure goals are achieved. Donor Stewardship & Community Engagement • Design and implement a comprehensive donor stewardship program appropriately scaled for OSA, ensuring timely, meaningful, and mission-centered donor engagement., • Build strong, authentic relationships with families, faculty, staff, PTSA leadership, student leaders, alumni families, and community volunteers. Community engagement is a key component of the Annual Fund success., • Serve as a visible and active campus presence to strengthen a culture of philanthropy across the school community., • Recruit, train, support, and steward parent fundraising volunteers and fundraising ambassadors., • Collaborate with faculty and Arts Pathway leaders to identify fundraising priorities and storytelling opportunities., • Develop opportunities to elevate student voice and participation in donor engagement and stewardship activities., • Partner with school leadership and parent organizations to increase participation in philanthropic activities. Secondary Priority: Advancement Operations & Analytics Advancement Operations • Lead advancement operations strategy, systems management, reporting infrastructure, and donor data integrity. Direct contract CRM manager in data and reporting functions., • Oversee CRM strategy and database management systems, ensuring accurate gift processing, donor records, campaign tracking, and reporting. Direct contract CRM manager in data and reporting functions. Collaborate with the Accounting Manager in the Finance Department to ensure accurate tracking of donations., • Supervise and collaborate with the CRM/database management consultant to maintain best-practice data standards and operational efficiency., • Develop and maintain advancement dashboards and reports tracking fundraising progress, donor retention, participation rates, campaign performance, and key performance indicators., • Ensure moves management systems and donor lifecycle tracking are consistently implemented across advancement activities., • Coordinate donor acknowledgment processes, pledge tracking, donor reporting systems, and gift documentation. This is the everyday work of writing/printing acknowledgements, securing signatures, mailing, CRM inputs, etc., • Establish and maintain advancement procedures, operational protocols, and fundraising calendars., • Support forecasting, budgeting, and fundraising analytics for the Office of Advancement and Marketing. Prospect Research & Portfolio Support • Conduct donor and prospect research to support major gift cultivation strategies., • Prepare donor briefings, research profiles, meeting materials, and portfolio tracking reports for the Director of Advancement and Marketing and Executive Director., • Assist in identifying prospective leadership donors and pipeline opportunities within the OSA community., • Coordinate prospect tracking and relationship mapping across advancement portfolios., • Work collaboratively with advancement staff and consultants to support donor qualification and cultivation strategies. Leadership & Collaboration • Participate actively in Advancement leadership planning and strategic goal-setting., • Collaborate closely with the Director of Institutional Giving & Strategic Partnerships on donor pipeline development and institutional fundraising strategy., • Support the Director of Advancement and Marketing with Board Development Committee materials, fundraising reporting, and donor engagement strategies., • Participate in school events, performances, exhibitions, and community activities to strengthen institutional visibility and donor relationships., • Participate in designated all-staff meetings, school leadership meetings, and professional development opportunities., • Perform other duties as assigned by the Director of Advancement and Marketing. What We’re Looking For OSA seeks a mission-driven advancement professional who combines strong relationship-building skills with operational sophistication and strategic thinking. The ideal candidate is highly organized, collaborative, data-informed, community-oriented, and passionate about strengthening a culture of philanthropy in support of public arts education. If you do not meet every qualification but feel passionate about this role and our mission, we encourage you to apply. Education • Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university required. Experience (Preferred) • 5–7 years of progressive fundraising and advancement operations experience., • Demonstrated success managing annual giving programs and donor engagement initiatives., • Experience overseeing CRM/database systems and advancement reporting., • Experience using fundraising analytics and donor segmentation to inform strategy and improve outcomes., • Proven success managing multiple fundraising campaigns and projects simultaneously., • Experience working in schools, arts organizations, community nonprofits, or mission-driven organizations preferred., • Experience supervising consultants, vendors, or volunteers preferred., • Familiarity with DonorPerfect, Raiser’s Edge or comparable CRM systems. Core Competencies • Strong project and operations management skills., • Exceptional organizational skills and attention to detail., • Strong analytical and reporting capabilities., • Excellent written and verbal communication skills., • Ability to build authentic relationships with diverse stakeholders., • Ability to work collaboratively across departments and constituencies., • Demonstrated commitment to equity, inclusion, hospitality, and community engagement., • Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment., • Strong discretion and professionalism when handling confidential donor information., • Entrepreneurial mindset with the ability to improve systems and processes proactively. Compensation & Benefits The annual full-time, 1.00 FTE salary for this role will be $85,000 to $100,000. Salary will be commensurate with experience and credentials. OSA provides a comprehensive benefits package, including medical, dental, vision, commuter benefits, employee assistance program, and retirement plans with employer matching. This is a full-time, 12-month, exempt position for the 2026-2027 school year.