Advancement Coordinator

Carmel Youth Assistance Program (CYAP); Carmel (IN); Hybrid; USD 60,000 - 85,000; Full time

Job summary

Carmel Youth Assistance Program (CYAP) seeks a relationship-centered advancement professional to strengthen fundraising and donor engagement in Hamilton County. You will own donor and sponsor development, manage grants, and help raise CYAP's profile at community events.

In this 1099 role with two in-person days in Carmel, you’ll build a structured development plan, nurture partnerships, track impact, and collaborate with staff and a grant consultant to expand CYAP’s support for youth and

Qualifications

• Experience in nonprofit development, fundraising, donor relations, sponsorships, grant work, or a closely related field.
• Ability to build trust easily and communicate with warmth, professionalism, and good judgment.
• Proactive, responsive, and known for following through on the details.
• Can manage multiple deadlines and relationships while keeping records and next steps organized.
• Write clearly and persuasively and are eager to strengthen your grant-writing capabilities.

Responsibilities

• Identify, research, and qualify prospective donors, corporate sponsors, and family foundations.
• Create and execute an annual development plan and collaborate with CYAP staff and the Board’s Development Committee.
• Coordinate outreach, prepare donor meeting materials, and move next steps forward.
• Develop customized partnership opportunities and support sponsor engagement with CYAP programs and events.
• Create acknowledgments and ongoing touchpoints to show impact of gifts and maintain connections.

Skills

Donor relations

Sponsorships

Grant writing

Fundraising

Development

Job description

Help turn community relationships into opportunities for Carmel youth and families.

Carmel Youth Assistance Program (CYAP) is seeking a relationship-centered, highly dependable advancement professional to strengthen and grow our fundraising efforts. This role is ideal for someone who enjoys building donor and sponsor relationships, creating structure behind the scenes, and taking ownership of work from first idea through follow-up and completion.

You will join a small mission-driven office where people genuinely enjoy working together. The environment is relaxed and collaborative, but the work calls for initiative, responsiveness, sound judgment, and comfort operating in an organization where not every situation is black and white.

What You’ll Own

Donor and Sponsor Development

• Identify, research, and qualify prospective individual donors, corporate sponsors, and family foundations whose interests align with CYAP’s mission.
• Create and execute an annual development plan, establish practical activity goals, and collaborate with CYAP staff, the Board’s Development Committee, and outside partners.
• Coordinate outreach, prepare donor meeting materials, participate in cultivation conversations, and keep next steps moving.
• Develop customized partnership opportunities, manage sponsorship communication, and support sponsor engagement connected to CYAP programs and events.
• Create thoughtful, timely acknowledgments and ongoing touchpoints that help supporters understand the impact of their gifts and remain connected to CYAP.
• Maintain accurate donor and constituent records, document interactions and pledges, track restricted funds, and produce reports that show progress against development goals.

Grants Management and Writing

• Maintain the grant calendar, track deadlines and reporting requirements, support grant submissions, and progressively build the capability to draft grants with guidance from CYAP’s experienced grant consulting partner.
• Research new grant opportunities and build relationships to foster productive grant dialogue.

Marketing and Community Presence

• Represent CYAP at selected community events and help ensure fundraising-related event logistics and recognition are handled well.
• Design agency collateral, including flyers, brochures, signage, annual and impact reports, as well as other materials as needed.
• Integrate social media with development and event promotion to help further the mission and brand of CYAP.

What Success Looks Like

• CYAP has a consistent, organized pipeline of donor, sponsor, and grant opportunities.
• Donors receive timely communication, meaningful stewardship, and clear evidence of their impact.
• Development commitments, deadlines, follow-ups, and database records are completed accurately without repeated reminders.
• The role creates real capacity for teamwork is confidently handed off and reliably carried through.
• Over time, CYAP is less dependent on outside grant-writing support because you have developed the knowledge and skill to assume more of that work.
• The organization has a consistent social media presence aligned with brand standards and supporting outreach and events.

What You’ll Bring

• Experience in nonprofit development, fundraising, donor relations, sponsorships, grant work, or a closely related field.
• Ability to build trust easily and communicate with warmth, professionalism, and good judgment.
• Proactive, responsive, and known for following through on the details.
• Can manage multiple deadlines and relationships while keeping records and next steps organized.
• Write clearly and persuasively and are eager to strengthen your grant-writing capabilities.
• Comfortable working independently while also becoming a genuine, collaborative part of a small office team.
• Can navigate ambiguity, ask good questions, and move work forward without needing every step prescribed.
• Are available for two days of in-person work each week in Carmel and can flex for donor, sponsor, or community meetings when needed.
• Enjoy the flexibility of being an independent contractor (this is a 1099 role with no benefits eligibility).

Support and Collaboration

You will not be expected to build the development function alone. You will work closely with CYAP’s advocates and staff, collaborate monthly with the Board’s Development Committee, and receive support from an experienced grant consulting partner. Early in the engagement, regular collaboration will help you learn CYAP’s funding history, relationships, systems, and grant process so you can take on increasing ownership over time.

Ready to make a visible difference? We are looking for someone who will bring energy, ownership, and relationship-building strength to this role and who will be excited to help create more opportunities for young people and families in Hamilton County.