Director Leadership Giving

The Connecticut Mirror; Hartford (CT); Hybrid; USD 92,000 - 106,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical and dental benefits

Generous paid-time-off

403b retirement savings with company 3

Professional development and industry-

Job summary

The Connecticut Mirror seeks a Director of Leadership Giving to drive significant new philanthropic support and manage major donor relationships in Connecticut. Reporting to the Chief Growth Officer, the role focuses on cultivating high-capacity individuals and foundation funders, aiming for $300,000 in new major gifts annually.

The ideal candidate is a curious, results-driven self-starter skilled in relationship-building, storytelling, and strategic planning, with a passion for accountability

Qualifications

• Experience in fundraising or development.
• Excellent storytelling and written communication skills.
• Highly organized with ability to manage multiple donor portfolios.

Responsibilities

• Create a development work plan to increase annual major giving by $300,000 starting in 2027.
• Identify, prospect, cultivate, solicit, and steward high-capacity donors giving at least $5,000.
• Travel regularly to meet with donors in Connecticut and participate in events.
• Research and write grants for foundations and family foundations.
• Developfunding proposals and donor recognition materials in collaboration with leadership.
• Collaborate with the Chief Growth Officer, Publisher, Executive Editor, and board members to expand donor networks.

Skills

Donor prospecting

Major gifts fundraising

Grant storytelling

Relationship-building

Tools

CRM software

Grant applications software

Job description

The Connecticut Mirror (CT Mirror) is a nonpartisan, nonprofit journalism organization which launched in 2010 and has rapidly grown to become THE source of statewide news. CT Mirror won its first Pulitzer Prize for Local Reporting in 2026.

As a national leader in the nonprofit news field, CT Mirror has developed a strong base of member and donor support. CT Mirror’s 2027 operating budget is anticipated to be around $3.8M with significant growth and major initiatives planned for the next three years.

We seek a Director of Leadership Giving who is motivated to generate support for CT Mirror’s brand of accountability journalism. We are dedicated to ensuring people in Connecticut are more informed and politically engaged, state government is more transparent in policy-making, and officials maintain public trust. This position reports to the Chief Growth Officer and will be based in Connecticut.

This role will focus on generating significant new philanthropic support from prospective high-capacity individual donors and from foundation funders who are awakening to the value of adding journalism funding to their portfolios. CT Mirror has strong major donor retention. The Director of Leadership Giving will be responsible for $300,000 in new major gifts annually.

The ideal candidate is a curious, innovative self-starter who likes to experiment with new approaches to prospecting, has strong planning skills, and can execute on strategy quickly. That candidate is energized by building relationships with our loyal donors and developing new prospects.

In 2027 and 2028, we will build on the success of the past five years: launching an Arts and Culture beat, implementing Digital Democracy, and establishing a Fairfield County bureau, making investments to expand readership, and continuing to strategically grow staff and capabilities. If you join the team, you will generate the new funding CT Mirror needs to achieve these ambitious goals and deliver on our promise to readers and donors.

The responsibilities of the role include:

• Creating a development work plan for increasing annual major individual giving by $300,000 starting in 2027. Identifying, prospecting, cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding high-capacity individual donors giving at least $5,000. Traveling regularly to meet with donors in Connecticut. Attending CT Mirror events to engage with donors as part of the company’s prospecting and cultivation strategy. Researching and writing grants for community foundations, private foundations, and individual family foundations. Developing and executing support materials and activities for donor solicitation and stewardship (for example, small, intimate fundraising gatherings) in collaboration with the Chief Growth Officer. Developing funding proposals that showcase support opportunities aligning a prospect's interests with CT Mirror’s mission and vision. Ensuring prompt, creative and engaging recognition of major gifts. Participating in a robust stewardship practice.

We will look to you to blaze your own path to achieving our major donor goals. Your primary responsibility is to prospect new donors and funders. Your secondary responsibility is to encourage current donors to give more.

You will also collaborate with:

• The Chief Growth Officer who will maintain a portfolio of major donors. The Publisher who will participate in some major donor meetings with a strategic purpose. The Executive Editor and news staff to become familiar with their work, understand upcoming newsroom initiatives and innovations, and seize opportunities for donor cultivation and stewardship. Board members to leverage their networks for prospecting, stewarding and enhancing donor relationships

We’re interested in candidates who are:

• Passionate about journalism, including people who may not have fundraising experience but are intrigued by the opportunity to learn how to be a great fundraiser. Genuinely curious about other people and are interested in connecting in one-on-one conversations. Excellent storytellers with strong writing skills. Highly organized and understand how to execute on a plan. Evangelists for local news as a foundation for a thriving democracy and engaged communities. Collegial and committed to excellent interpersonal, networking, and relationship-building skills. Experienced in reporting, sales or development.

Our commitment to the candidate we hire:

• A competitive salary designed to attract a top-notch development professional. The anticipated salary range for this position is $92,000-$106,000 Medical and dental benefits, a generous paid-time-off policy, and a 403b retirement savings program with company match. Professional development and the opportunity to learn from peers at industry conferences. Flexibility to work remotely several days a week, as appropriate. Transparent internal performance review and feedback process. New PC or refurbished MAC.

You’ll work hard because we’re serious about our mission, but you’ll laugh plenty along the way because we can’t always be serious!

We embrace the American Press Institute’s Guiding Principles for Nonprofit Newsrooms.

CT Mirror is committed to building an inclusive organization that represents the people and communities we serve. We do not and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of our hiring, procurement, volunteer recruitment, or other activities or operations. We are committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for all members of our staff, board, volunteers, subcontractors, vendors, and readers.

Questions? Contact Clare Dignan ([e-mail]). No phone calls please