Director, Annual Giving & Foundation Relations

American Jewish University; Los Angeles (CA); Hybrid; USD 100,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

American Jewish University (AJU) seeks a Director of Annual Giving & Foundation Relations to strengthen and expand philanthropic support. Reporting to the Vice President for Advancement, this role leads multi‑channel fundraising, manages donor portfolios, and oversees foundation grants from proposal to reporting.

The ideal candidate will craft engaging donor communications, build international and local partnerships, and guide campaigns that increase annual gifts and donor retention while

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent professional experience.
• 5-7 years of progressive fundraising or nonprofit development experience.
• Proven experience managing a portfolio of individual donors.
• Strong grant writing experience with a track record of securing foundation funding.
• Knowledgeable on fundraising trends, philanthropic best practices, and emerging donor engagement strategies.

Responsibilities

• Develop and implement a comprehensive annual giving strategy.
• Plan and execute integrated fundraising campaigns across multiple channels, including Direct mail, Email, Digital and Social Media.
• Create annual fundraising calendars and appeal timelines.
• Collaborate with internal Communications team to develop compelling donor messaging and fundraising content.
• Analyze campaign performance and recommend strategies to improve donor acquisition, response rates, average gift size, and return on investment.
• Build out new donor welcome strategies to foster ongoing support.
• Design strategies to recover and re-engage lapsed donors, and increase donor retention.
• Increase participation and revenue from recurring/monthly donors.
• Create donor segmentation strategies based on giving history, interests, and engagement.
• Develop meaningful stewardship communications throughout the donor lifecycle.
• Ensure donors receive timely, personalized, and impactful acknowledgments and recognition.
• Analyze donor data to identify trends and opportunities for increased engagement.
• Recommend strategies to strengthen donor pipeline development and long-term fundraising growth.
• Develop individualized cultivation and solicitation strategies for a portfolio of approximately 50–75 mid-level donors and prospects
• Conduct donor discovery, qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship activities.
• Prepare donor briefings, proposals, solicitation materials, and follow‑up correspondence.
• Maintain accurate records of donor interactions and next steps within the CRM.
• Write compelling grant proposals, letters of inquiry, supporting materials and grant reports.
• Research and identify prospective foundation funding opportunities aligned with institutional priorities.
• Lead grant submissions process and ensure timely completion of application requirements.
• Prepare accurate and compelling grant reports demonstrating measurable outcomes and impact.
• Develop and maintain relationships with foundation program officers.
• Maintain grant calendars and reporting schedules.
• Collaborate with faculty and program leaders to collect information needed for proposals and reports.
• Track proposal outcomes and foundation stewardship activities.

Skills

Fundraising

Donor relations

Grant writing

Donor stewardship

Strategic planning

Nonprofit development

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

CRM software

Excel

Job description

American Jewish University (AJU) seeks a Director of Annual Giving & Foundation Relations to strengthen and expand philanthropic support. Reporting to the Vice President for Advancement, this role leads multi‑channel fundraising, manages donor portfolios, and oversees foundation grants from proposal to reporting.

The ideal candidate will craft engaging donor communications, build international and local partnerships, and guide campaigns that increase annual gifts and donor retention while