Development Associate

National Association For Education Of Young Children NAEYC; Washington (District of Columbia); Hybrid; USD 45,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) seeks a Development Associate to support donor engagement, fundraising campaigns, and stewardship. You'll manage records, generate metrics, and assist with prospect research in a mission-driven nonprofit.

Reporting to the Senior Director of Development and Donor Relations, the role offers a hybrid schedule in the DC Metro region and opportunities to grow in nonprofit fundraising and donor relations.

Qualifications

• A bachelor's degree or equivalent experience.
• At least two years of nonprofit development, fundraising, donor relations, or nonprofit administration experience.
• Clean, on-brand writing instincts, and fluency with AI-assisted content tools as part of a modern workflow.
• Strong prospect research skills and comfort with accurate, high-volume data entry.
• A self-directed streak - you take ownership of your work and follow through without hand-holding.
• Experience with a CRM or donor database (e.g., Salesforce, Raiser's Edge, DonorPerfect) is a plus but not required; willingness and ability to learn new database systems is required.
• Strong written communication, editing, and proofreading skills.
• Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail.
• Highly organized, with demonstrated ability to manage multiple tasks, meet deadlines, and follow through on assignments without significant oversight.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, particularly Word and Excel, and comfort with online tools such as SharePoint, OneDrive, and Claude.
• Commitment to NAEYC's values of excellence and innovation, transparency, reflection, equity and opportunity, collaboration, and care.

Responsibilities

• Support fundraising appeals, donor communications, acknowledgements, and stewardship activities.
• Maintain donor, member, and prospect records in Salesforce or other fundraising databases.
• Generate reports, mailing lists, dashboards, and fundraising metrics.
• Conduct donor and prospect research and prepare briefing materials.
• Track donor and prospect activities across funding pipelines.
• Coordinate logistics for cultivation and stewardship events.
• Provide project and administrative support to the Development team.

Skills

Organizational skills

Attention to detail

Excellent written communication

Multitasking

Self-directed

Editing/proofreading

AI-assisted content fluency

Data entry accuracy

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience

Tools

Salesforce

Raiser's Edge

DonorPerfect

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel

SharePoint

OneDrive

Job description

Job Description

Job Description

Hybrid - Washington, DC Metro Region | Full-Time, Exempt

If you're the person who loves keeping details organized, managing multiple priorities, and ensuring nothing falls through the cracks, this opportunity may be for you.

The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) advances high-quality early learning for children from birth through age 8. As our Development Associate, you'll serve as an essential member of the Development Team, supporting donor engagement, fundraising operations, stewardship activities, and data management that help advance NAEYC's mission. You'll manage multiple workstreams, maintain accurate records, support fundraising initiatives, and help ensure donors receive an exceptional experience from their first interaction through ongoing stewardship.

The Opportunity

Reporting to the Senior Director of Development and Donor Relations, the Development Associate will play a key role in supporting donor communications, database management, prospect research, fundraising campaigns, and stewardship activities. This position is ideal for an early-career development professional looking to build a strong foundation in nonprofit fundraising and donor relations within a mission-driven organization.

What You'll Own

• Support fundraising appeals, donor communications, acknowledgements, and stewardship activities.


• Maintain donor, member, and prospect records in Salesforce or other fundraising databases.


• Generate reports, mailing lists, dashboards, and fundraising metrics.


• Conduct donor and prospect research and prepare briefing materials.


• Track donor and prospect activities across funding pipelines.


• Coordinate logistics for cultivation and stewardship events.


• Provide project and administrative support to the Development team.

What You Bring

• A bachelor's degree or equivalent experience.


• At least two years of nonprofit development, fundraising, donor relations, or nonprofit administration experience.


• Clean, on-brand writing instincts, and fluency with AI-assisted content tools as part of a modern workflow.


• Strong prospect research skills and comfort with accurate, high-volume data entry.


• A self-directed streak - you take ownership of your work and follow through without hand-holding.


• Experience with a CRM or donor database (e.g., Salesforce, Raiser's Edge, DonorPerfect) is a plus but not required; willingness and ability to learn new database systems is required.


• Strong written communication, editing, and proofreading skills.


• Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail.


• Highly organized, with demonstrated ability to manage multiple tasks, meet deadlines, and follow through on assignments without significant oversight.


• Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, particularly Word and Excel, and comfort with online tools such as SharePoint, OneDrive, and Claude.


• Commitment to NAEYC's values of excellence and innovation, transparency, reflection, equity and opportunity, collaboration, and care.

Why NAEYC

Your precision keeps campaigns that matter to real children and families on track and on brand. You'll work in a collaborative, fast-moving environment, with the flexibility of a hybrid schedule based in the DC Metro region.

NAEYC is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status.