Development Director – Washington D.C.

Reading Partners is changing the education landscape. We are a leader in working to solve the literacy crisis in our country by leveraging community volunteers in under-resourced schools. Our diverse and expansive volunteer base provides one-on-one tutoring to students twice weekly, and our program is proven to help children master the reading fundamentals they need to unlock their potential as successful, happy, and confident readers in school and in life. Our people are our heartbeat and our greatest resource; we are all passionately rallied around our mission to help children become lifelong learners by empowering communities to provide individualized instruction that truly works. Join our stellar, committed team leading the charge to deepen our impact and expand our service. Watch this video to learn more about the mission and core tutoring work of Reading Partners.

The high level:

The Development Director (DD) is part of a team of fundraisers and relationship builders working together to support Reading Partners’ strategic growth plan. The Development Director’s main roles are to create and implement the overarching regional fundraising strategy, lead cultivation and stewardship of many high-level external relationships, and lead, develop, and mobilize a local development team to achieve ambitious fundraising goals. The Development Director directly manages the Development Manager. Reporting directly to the Executive Director in Washington D.C., the Development Director creatively develops, leads and drives ambitious fundraising strategy, board management in close partnership with the Executive Director, and new fundraising generation. As a trusted advisor and strategic thought partner to the Executive Director, the Development Director is a senior leader in the region who catalyzes regional growth as a resource mobilizer, as a fundraising and external relations expert, and as a savvy people leader and relationship builder.

What you’ll do:

Each year, create, lead, and drive overarching fundraising strategy, operational plans, and all revenue activities to meet or exceed fundraising goals for the region.

During the 2025 fiscal year, create a fundraising strategic plan for the next 3-5 years
Maintain high renewal rates across all funding streams by identifying opportunities and executing renewal upgrades with existing donors
Manage local government grants and continue to seek out government funding opportunities to support the continuation and expansion of Reading Partners DC
Own, develop and implement innovative strategies to increase foundation and corporate funding streams
Own, develop and implement innovative strategies to increase individual giving, particularly with >$1,000 major donors
Cultivate relationships with foundation and corporate leaders, communicating regularly to remain aware of new or changing funding opportunities
Develop and implement strategies to raise 30% of upcoming fiscal year revenue in the previous fiscal year
Develop an annual Individual Engagement and Investment Plan (IEIP) with each board member to identify their annual personal gift and strategy for engaging their networks in fundraising and volunteering
Working with board members and the Executive Director, create and implement cultivation strategies for major donors to build progressive and multi-year giving
Work with the Executive Director to identify and cultivate funding sources to expand Reading Partners DC throughout the DC Metro region

Drive regional external relations and local brand by…

Build Reading Partners DC’s presence in the DC Metro region by serving as a spokesperson and representative at local events and through membership in local philanthropic organizations
Develop creative strategies to keep fundraising campaigns and events fresh and engaging
Serve as staff liaison to the local advisory board Sustainability Committee to develop effective strategies for fundraising events and activities
Working with the Executive Director and board members, employ innovative and creative touchpoints to keep donors/stakeholders engaged with the organization
Working with Community Engagement identify volunteer recruitment partners to cultivate as potential donors, and vice versa
Working with Community Engagement and the Executive Director, foster and maintain relationships with local media to promote brand visibility

Lead local 2 person team (including Development Director) to meet ambitious goals by managing their own portfolios, and by executing excellent development operations.

Lead team to execute responsibilities with excellence and creativity, by providing clear and compelling strategies, coaching, and constructive feedback
Lead Development Manager to manage a diverse portfolio (Individual giving, corporate and foundation giving, government grants, etc.)
Drive streamlined development operations and event planning, ensuring deadlines are met and deliverables are of the highest quality
Ensure database is managed to meet local and national expectations, with minimal corrections identified on audit reports
Lead team to build, grow and maintain strong collaborative relationships across the Reading Partners network, encouraging their active participation in REDI and other cross-functional groups, as well as, local professional groups to help expand their skills and networks

Other duties as needed.

How you’ll do it:

Strategic Planning:

Demonstrate an ability to devise innovative regional strategic fundraising plans, create action steps, and mobilize many stakeholders to achieve fundraising goals. Build sustainable plans to maximize market opportunities, meet goals and significantly grow funding. In addition, leverage systems, people, and resources to drive processes and track progress against goals to report on progress to senior leadership and board. Execute work in a highly organized, analytical, and data-informed manner.

External Relations & Communication

Demonstrate advanced experience in external relations, board management and communication, and strategic stewardship and cultivation of donors. Deliver convincing messaging and demonstrate a genuine joy in connecting with donors, and all external stakeholders that reflects Reading Partners’ culture and values.
Serve as an ambassador of Reading Partners. Quickly establish credibility when promoting Reading Partners to external audiences. Demonstrate a high degree of comfort and poise with donors, corporations, and prospects.

New Revenue Generation

Demonstrate a strong track record in driving development efforts in rapidly growing organizations particularly in the DC Metro region.. Demonstrate ability to hit fundraising goals, generate new funding sources, and run sophisticated corporate and individual giving campaigns. Demonstrate success in cultivation. Show a strong hunger and drive to not only drive strategy internally, but also to heavily participate in external relationship building and fundraising.

People Leadership

Positively collaborate with and lead an internal team to meet and exceed aggressive fundraising goals. Consistently coach, grow, and create stretch assignments to grow future fundraising leaders from within.

About you!

You’ll be successful in this role if you:

Have 5+ years of increasing responsibility in a development or related role
Have successfully led and managed a team for at least 1+ year
Are an exceptional and persuasive communicator
Are achievement-oriented and have a demonstrated track record of achieving aggressive fundraising goals in the six-figure range.
Demonstrate a commitment to race, equity, diversity, and inclusion in your leadership.
Display a deep belief in our mission and root your work in our core values.
Ability to prove eligibility to work legally in the U.S. and that you are at least 18 years of age.

Bonus Points if you:

Are an AmeriCorps, Peace Corps, or other national service alum/alumna
Have experience working in launch or growth phases of organizations
Have a high degree of comfort with Salesforce or other fundraising database
Have experience working in education or literacy

Reading Partners

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Development Director – Washington D.C.