Development Manager

The Choir School of Delaware, Inc.; Wilmington (DE); Hybrid; USD 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

The Choir School of Delaware, Inc. seeks a proactive Development Manager to lead donor engagement, donor reactivation, foundation relationships, and event sponsorship execution in close collaboration with the Executive Director.

You will work with a pre-segmented donor pipeline in Monday.com and supported by DonorView CRM. The Development Manager will focus on outbound outreach, micro-grant writing, corporate sponsorships, and event execution, with external partners for major grants and

Qualifications

• 2–4 years of non-profit fundraising or donor engagement with a track record of closing gifts.
• Comfortable making cold calls, building rapport, and soliciting donations.
• Hands-on with pipeline/task management tools and CRM systems.
• Experience planning events, galas, or sponsorship fulfillment.
• Bachelor’s degree in non-profit management, communications, or related field.

Responsibilities

• Lead donor engagement, reactivate lapsed donors, and cultivate supporters.
• Execute annual giving campaigns and Director’s Circle initiatives.
• Manage Monday.com donor pipelines and DonorView CRM workflows.
• Coordinate with Executive Director on fundraising initiatives and gifts.
• Plan and manage annual Gala, sponsorships, and donor events.
• Draft micro-grant applications and liaise with external grant writers.
• Assist with data gathering for major grants and ensure donor acknowledgments.

Skills

Donor outreach

Event coordination

Relationship management

Fundraising

Phone outreach

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Monday.com

DonorView

DonorPerfect

Raiser’s Edge

Salesforce

Job description

The Choir School of Delaware (CSD) seeks a proactive, relationship-driven Development Manager to lead individual donor engagement, donor reactivation, foundation relationships, and event sponsorship execution in close collaboration with an active Executive Director. This role comes with turnkey organizational infrastructure: candidates inherit a pre-segmented donor pipeline pre-loaded into Monday.com and supported by DonorView CRM, eliminating the need to build prospect lists from scratch.

The Development Manager will focus on high-touch outbound outreach, micro-grant writing, corporate sponsorships, and event execution, supported by external partners for major grants over $5,000 (ShoeString DE) and communications contractors. Major government and federal grants are led by executive leadership.

TIME ALLOCATION & CORE RESPONSIBILITIES

50% — Outbound Donor Engagement & Direct Solicitations

• Conduct direct donor outreach via phone calls, personal visits, and targeted asks to reactivate lapsed donors and cultivate active supporters.
• Lead strategy and execution to expand CSD’s flagship $1,000+ Director’s Circle and individual annual giving campaigns.
• Work directly with pre-built donor pipelines and stewardship workflows pre-loaded into Monday.com and tracked in DonorView CRM.
• Partner hand-in-hand with the Executive Director to execute established fundraising initiatives and close individual gifts.

30% — Events & Corporate Sponsorships

• Serve as the lead point person for planning, coordinating, and executing CSD’s annual Spring Gala, managing timelines, vendor relationships, host committees, and revenue targets.
• Pitch and secure local corporate sponsorships for CSD’s Spring Gala and high-visibility side-by-side performance season.
• Manage logistics for smaller donor cultivation gatherings, friend-raising receptions, and post-concert touchpoints throughout the season.

20% — Administration & Micro-Grants

• Research, draft, and submit community micro-grant applications for requests under $5,000.
• Act as internal staff liaison to ShoeString DE, CSD’s external grant writing firm managing corporate and foundation proposals over $5,000.
• Assist the Executive Director with data gathering and support for major federal grant applications as needed.
• Maintain data integrity within DonorView CRM, process incoming donations, and ensure prompt delivery of tax receipts and donor acknowledgment letters.
• Collaborate closely with CSD’s external communications contractor to align direct mail, digital campaigns, and narrative storytelling with fundraising pushes.

QUALIFICATIONS & REQUIREMENTS

• Experience: 2–4 years of non-profit fundraising, direct sales, or donor engagement experience with a demonstrated track record of closing gifts and managing events.
• Fundraising Drive: Highly comfortable picking up the phone, building personal rapport, making cold calls to lapsed supporters, and asking for financial commitments.
• Turnkey Tech Proficiency: Hands-on experience with pipeline/task management tools like Monday.com and CRM software such as DonorView (or similar systems like DonorPerfect, Raiser's Edge, or Salesforce).
• Event Management: Proven project management skills in executing major events, galas, or corporate sponsorship fulfillment.
• Education: Bachelor’s degree in non-profit management, communications, business, or equivalent practical experience preferred.
• Operational Requirements: Ability to work occasional evenings or weekends for performances and major events; valid state driver’s license and ability to pass state-mandated background checks.

WORK ENVIRONMENT & PHYSICAL DEMANDS

• Hybrid schedule (combination of remote and in-office) available after introductory probationary period.
• On-site presence required for team meetings, donor cultivation, event execution, and performance venues.
• Occasional lifting of up to 25–30 lbs for event setup.
• Local travel within Delaware as required for donor meetings and events.