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Description:

Along with committed colleagues in the division of Alumni, Communications & Philanthropy, Philanthropy Officers (POs) play a key role in advancing the distinctive mission of Berea College, which admits only academically promising students with limited financial resources, primarily from Appalachia. At Berea, no student pays for tuition. But, as one of nine federally recognized work colleges, all students work 10 hours or more weekly, earning money for books, housing, and meals.

To support Berea’s mission of providing a Tuition Promise Scholarship to every admitted student, Philanthropy Officers help the College meet an annual fund goal of nearly $5 million dollars to supplement income from Berea’s $1.7 billion endowment. Philanthropy Officers are also critical to the success of special campaigns for capital and programmatic needs.

To meet these ambitious goals, Philanthropy Officers cultivate trust-based relationships with alumni and friend donors that lead to major outright gifts, life income gifts, and bequests. These relationships are built by connecting donors’ charitable interests with the multi-faceted mission of the College. It is a process that requires understanding donors’ passions, effectively conveying the College’s remarkable story, and sustaining a relationship with donors in a thoughtful and personal way.

The Philanthropy Officer is responsible for developing and carrying out strategies and activities resulting in discovery, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of a portfolio of donors capable of making gifts of $50,000 or more to Berea College and meeting all other assigned metrics and objectives.

Your Key Responsibilities:

Build and manage an appropriate portfolio of alumni and friend donors capable of making gifts of $50,000 or more to the College.
Develop and execute individualized strategies for discovery, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of major gift donors.
Maintain a disciplined cadence of meaningful donor engagement, including in-person visits, virtual meetings, proposals, strategic communications, and other strategic contacts per year.
Serve as a trusted liaison between donors and the College, responding promptly to inquiries and ensuring an exceptional donor experience.
Secure major outright gifts, multi-year commitments, life income gifts, and planned gift commitments in support of Berea’s annual fund and other institutional priorities.
Partner with academic leaders, advancement colleagues, and senior leadership to execute strategies aligned with donor interests and institutional priorities.
Proactively manage administrative work, including completion of travel plans, itineraries, contact reports, expense reports, correspondence, and proposals with a commitment to accurate and timely documentation of all work.
Assist the executive director, divisional leaders, and colleagues in other duties as assigned to meet the challenges and opportunities of Berea’s philanthropy goals, including participating in College events, especially ACP events during the day, evenings, or weekends as needed.
Demonstrate fiscal responsibility and thoughtful planning in the use and care of all College resources, including staff and student time; funds budgeted for travel, telephone, events, or other activities; and property such as vehicles, computers, cell phones, etc.
Participate actively in all required and requested meetings, openly contributing ideas and suggestions to strengthen Berea’s philanthropy program.
Serve as a teacher and mentor to other ACP colleagues and to Berea College students as opportunities arise.
Engage in continuous learning related to best practices, including participating in formal professional development activities as suggested/needed.

What You'll Bring:

Education required to ensure success in this position:

Bachelor’s Degree

Experience required to ensure success in this position:

Minimum 3 years of successful fundraising (higher education non-profit setting preferred) with demonstrated success in soliciting and closing major gifts.
5 years of experience with demonstrated success in a related field such as sales may be considered.

Special skills, knowledge and abilities:

A commitment to the special mission of Berea College.
Ability to articulate the importance of Berea’s distinctive place in higher education and an integrated vision for support to the College.
Demonstrated negotiation and solicitation skills.
Highly developed executive organizational and follow through skills and capacity to determine priorities that balance autonomy with accountability.
Ability to manage several development activities and strategies simultaneously while maintaining timeframes.
Excellent communication (oral and written) and interpersonal skills—a sense of curiosity, deep listening, and strategic thinking contribute to success.
Unwavering integrity, discretion, patience, persistence, good judgment, sense of self, and emotional intelligence; ability to represent Berea College with authenticity and professionalism, articulating the College’s distinctive mission and impact to diverse audiences.
A committed team member who contributes to and celebrates others’ success.
Ability to work independently to integrate disparate information and recognize opportunities to create effective strategies that inspire increased support from donors.
Knowledge of or capacity to learn and articulate concepts of major and planned giving, foundation, campaign, and corporate giving strategies, particularly centered around a fundraising campaign.

License, certification, or registration necessary:

Valid driver’s license and good driving record
Required background check

Physical requirements:

Extensive travel (up to two business weeks a month) and phone work required.
Ability to navigate campus/public buildings and grounds
Ability to travel independently by car and/or plane (navigate airports with luggage and portable computer)
Ability to occasionally lift up to 20 lbs.
Must be able to drive a car on extended trips with significant daily mileage.

Environmental conditions:

Extensive travel.
Professional office environment with interruptions and noise due to frequent visitors, students, staff and faculty, when not traveling.
Administrative support shared with other philanthropy officers.
Weekend work as necessary.

Ability to operate the following vehicles or equipment:

Vehicle- College cars/vans/golf cart. Personal car when necessary.
Laptop and tablet, with strong aptitude for the following tasks:
1. Use of Internet to obtain information and book travel arrangements.
2. Use of Microsoft programs, including Outlook, Word, and Excel; PowerPoint preferred.
3. Navigating various software platforms that support daily activities.
4. Data entry of contact reports and prospect tracking information.
5. Cell phone and institution’s phone/voice mail system.

Supplemental Information

Eliminating tuition costs for every admitted student. That’s the difference Philanthropy Officers make at Berea College.

Candidates for the position should share a deep connection to the mission of the College and thrive in a dynamic, collaborative, inclusive, and goal-oriented environment. Candidates should find fulfillment in helping donors achieve their philanthropic goals. The position is based on Berea’s beautiful and historic campus with hybrid work opportunities; extensive travel, evening work, and occasional weekend engagements are part of a successful Philanthropy Officer’s experience.

Be part of providing the best education money CAN’T buy—and part of a philanthropy team committed to excellence, integrity, and meaningful impact. Apply today!

Founded in 1855, Berea College is nationally recognized as the first coeducational and interracial college in the South. Berea has a longstanding commitment to interracial education and is one of the most racially diverse private liberal arts colleges in the United States. With an emphasis on service to Appalachia and beyond, Berea enrolls more than 1,500 students from 46 states and U.S. territories and more than 70 countries. Berea College admits students who are unable to afford tuition and provides all of them with a no-tuition promise. Berea’s students excel in the College’s supportive yet demanding academic environment, and most are the first in their families to attend college. As one of only ten federally recognized Work Colleges, all Berea students are expected to work 10-12 hours weekly in various positions across campus. Berea College is also the only institution in Kentucky to receive the 5-Star Rating from Money Magazine, 2025. Washington Monthly has named Berea College the #1 Best College in the nation in its 2025 College Guide. Berea College appears in their rankings as #1 College (overall): Best College for your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars, #1 Best-in Class College, #1 Liberal Arts College and #1 Best Bang for the Buck Southern College.

Located where the Bluegrass Region meets the Cumberland Mountains, the town of Berea (pop. 16,000) lies forty miles south of Lexington and is approximately two hours from Cincinnati, Louisville, and Knoxville. More information about Berea College is available at www.berea.edu.

Berea College, in light of its mission in the tradition of impartial love and social equality, welcomes all people of the earth to learn and work here.

Berea College is always looking for talented, self-motivated individuals to join our team. If you think you are ready to be a part of an exciting team, then we encourage you to continue with this applicant friendly, online job application!

Berea College is an Equal Opportunity Employer that recruits and hires qualified candidates without regard to race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, disability, or veteran status.

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