Director Major Gifts

Covenant House Illinois; United States; Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Covenant House Illinois is seeking a Director, Major Gifts to lead and grow our major gifts program.

The role focuses on building enduring donor relationships, identifying prospects, and guiding cultivation, solicitation and stewardship to advance youth homelessness initiatives within a mission-driven framework.

Qualifications

• Experience leading major gifts programs and donor lifecycle.
• Ability to cultivate transformational donor conversations with a mission-driven focus.
• Comfort working in a hybrid, rapid-changing environment and trauma-informed practices.

Responsibilities

• Lead prospect identification, qualification, cultivation, solicitation and stewardship.
• Manage full major gifts fundraising lifecycle to support youth homelessness initiatives.
• Collaborate with donors, partners, staff and volunteers to strengthen community investment.

Skills

Major gifts fundraising

Relationship building

Donor engagement

Job description

The client seeks a Director, Major Gifts who is a seasoned major gifts fundraiser and mission-driven relationship builder. This role will support an ambitious philanthropic vision focused on lasting impact for youth experiencing homelessness and housing instability, operating at the intersection of immediate human needs and long-term systems change. The director will be expected to bring both frontline development discipline and strategic instincts to lead effective donor engagement.

The Director, Major Gifts will manage the full major gift fundraising lifecycle, including prospect identification and qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship. The individual will execute each stage with intentionality and care, and will be motivated by building genuine, transformational donor conversations. The role supports donor, partner, staff, and volunteer engagement to strengthen community investment in mission outcomes.

Work is performed in a hybrid setting, combining remote work with on-site office hours and off-site donor meetings. The director may be exposed to challenging behavioral situations and high-stress environments and is expected to maintain composure while applying trauma-informed practices in all interactions. The position also requires the ability to perform a variety of physical activities, including walking long distances, climbing stairs, and lifting bags or boxes up to 50 pounds.