Campaign Director

Lafayette College; College Hill (PA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

Lafayette College seeks a Campaign Director, a senior advancement professional responsible for strategic planning, execution, and management of the college’s comprehensive capital campaign. This role focuses on systems, timelines, volunteer coordination, and support for the VP on operational strategy and frontline fundraising.

The Director provides leadership to ensure the campaign stays on schedule, aligns with priorities, and achieves financial goals, reporting to the VP for Advancement and

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s degree or fundraising credentials preferred.
• 7–10+ years of progressive fundraising experience in higher education.
• Experience leading a comprehensive capital campaign is highly preferred.
• Proven ability to manage cross-functional teams and large-scale projects.

Responsibilities

• Develop and manage the comprehensive capital campaign plan with timelines and milestones.
• Coordinate volunteer leadership and committees; support for Board of Trustees.
• Collaborate with college leadership on messaging, marketing, and donor communications.
• Direct frontline fundraising for major gifts as needed (>$100K) and provide strategic briefing to VP.
• Provide strategic briefing materials for the VP and trustees.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Stakeholder engagement

Project management

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree (preferred)

Tools

Advancement CRM systems

Campaign analytics tools

Job description

The Campaign Director is a senior advancement professional responsible for the strategic planning, execution, and management of Lafayette College’s comprehensive capital campaign. This role will focus on behind-the-scenes systems, timelines, and volunteer coordination, as well as support for the VP on operational strategy and frontline principal gift fundraising.

Position Summary

The Fundraising Campaign Director provides strategic leadership and administrative oversight for the College’s comprehensive fundraising campaign. Reporting to the Vice President for Advancement, this individual collaborates closely with the College President, Board of Trustees, Provost, senior development staff, and consultants. The Director ensures that the campaign moves on schedule, remains aligned with institutional priorities, and achieves its financial goals.

Core Responsibilities

• 1. Strategic Campaign Planning & Management
• Develop the Campaign Blueprint: Design and execute the multi-year campaign plan, including high-level timelines, operational benchmarks, performance milestones, and specific deliverables.
• Complete and expand Case Statements and Marketing Support: Partner with senior leaders and academic stakeholders to draft the overarching case for support and campaign messaging frameworks.
• Pipeline & Data Analytics: Work with advancement operations and information strategy teams to apply fundraising data, modeling, and analytics toward prospect tracking and pipeline management.
• Progress Reporting: Synthesize complex fundraising metrics into clear, actionable progress reports for the President, Vice President, and Board of Trustees.
• 2. Volunteer Leadership & Committee Staffing
• Manage Committees: Serve as the primary staff liaison for the College’s Campaign steering committee and volunteer sub-committees.
• Board Engagement: Prepare annotated agendas, strategy briefings, and supporting materials to prepare trustees and key external volunteers for successful fundraising outreach.
• 3. Cross-Functional Coordination & Marketing
• Align Advancement Teams: Act as the central point of coordination connecting major gifts, annual giving, alumni relations, corporate relations, and donor stewardship functions to ensure a unified approach.
• Campaign Communications: Collaborate with the College Communications and Advancement Marketing teams to oversee the development of specialized donor collateral, campaign web platforms, and public launch events.
• 4. Portfolio Management & Gift Solicitation (Varies by Institution)
• Frontline Fundraising (If Applicable): Manage a small portfolio of high-net-worth individuals, directing the cultivation, strategy, and solicitation of major ($100K+) and principal ($1M+) gifts.
• Leadership Support: Accompany the Vice President on donor visits, providing strategic briefing materials beforehand.

Job Requirements & Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s degree or professional fundraising credentials preferred.
• Experience: 7–10+ years of progressive fundraising experience, specifically in a higher education advancement setting. Direct experience playing a lead or major supporting role in a comprehensive capital campaign is highly preferred.
• Management Skills: Proven experience managing cross-functional teams, supervising professional staff, or driving large-scale project management initiatives.
• Technical Proficiency: Deep knowledge of advancement CRM networks and campaign analytics tools.
• Core Competencies: Exceptional writing and speech communication skills; capability to interact professionally with high-profile stakeholders, trustees, and executives; strong discretion regarding confidential donor information.

Lafayette College is committed to creating a diverse community, one that is inclusive and responsive, and is supportive of each and all of its faculty, students, and staff. All members of the College community share a responsibility for creating, maintaining, and developing a learning environment in which difference is valued, equity is sought, and inclusiveness is practiced. All Lafayette operations reflect the College’s commitment to Diversity, Equity, Access, and Inclusion (DEAI) initiatives, and Lafayette welcomes applicants from diverse backgrounds.