Director of Advancement (opens in new tab)

Kentucky Nonprofit Network LLC; Lexington (KY); On-site; USD 85,000 - 95,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance

Three weeks paid vacation

120 hours paid sick leave

Free downtown parking

Job summary

Lexington Children’s Museum is seeking an experienced Director of Advancement to lead its comprehensive fundraising program, including annual giving, major gifts, foundations, corporate philanthropy, and planned giving. The role reports to the Executive Director and guides donor cultivation, stewardship, and strategic campaigns.

You will build a durable advancement operation, foster strong donor relations, and work with the leadership team to meet long-term goals.

Qualifications

• Six+ years in nonprofit fundraising with major gifts.
• Experience with donor engagement and fundraising strategy.
• Capital campaigns experience preferred.
• Experience working with boards and committees.
• Occasional evening and weekend availability for events.

Responsibilities

• Lead annual and long-range fundraising strategy and revenue targets.
• Manage a portfolio of major donors and prospects with cultivation and stewardship.
• Partner with the Executive Director and Board on donor relationships and gift opportunities.
• Lead campaign implementation and coordinate donor materials and reporting.
• Oversee donor communications, ticketed events, and fundraising reporting.

Skills

Fundraising strategy

Donor engagement

Major gifts

Portfolio management

Board collaboration

Staff leadership

Data-driven decisions

Job description

Director of Advancement

Reports To: Executive Director

Full-Time, Salary

Lexington Children’s Museum inspires future generations through educational play. We strive to spark curiosity in children, connect families in meaningful ways, and support educators. The Museum has adopted this mission statement:

Lexington Children's Museum’s mission is to create a fun and inclusive learning

experience that ignites a community of curious minds.

Overview

Lexington Children’s Museum is seeking an experienced fundraiser and strategic leader to serve as its Director of Advancement. Reporting to the Executive Director and serving as a member of the leadership team, the Director will lead the Museum’s comprehensive advancement program, including annual giving, major gifts, foundation and institutional giving, corporate philanthropy, planned giving, and capital campaign implementation. The Director will establish fundraising priorities, personally cultivate and solicit major donors, and build the strategies, systems, and partnerships needed to grow philanthropic support and advance the Museum’s long-term goals.

Fundraising and Donor Engagement:

• Lead the Museum’s annual and long-range fundraising strategy, establish revenue and donor engagement goals, monitor performance against targets, and adjust strategies to strengthen philanthropic revenue and donor retention.
• Manage a portfolio and pipeline of major donors and prospects, including personal cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship.
• Partner with the Executive Director and Board on major donor relationships and gift opportunities.
• Strengthen donor retention, engagement, and opportunities to increase philanthropic support.
• Develop and maintain a qualified pipeline of prospective donors, using prospect research, relationship management, and giving history to prioritize cultivation and solicitation opportunities.
• Develop and grow the Museum’s planned giving program.
• Develop and lead corporate philanthropy and sponsorship strategies, cultivating new relationships and growing existing corporate support for the Museum’s programs, exhibits, events, and long-term priorities.
• Lead and engage the Development Committee in advancing the Museum’s fundraising priorities, equipping committee members to support donor cultivation, solicitation, stewardship, and the identification of new funding opportunities.
• Lead the fundraising strategy for Night for the Museum, maximizing revenue, donor engagement, and conversion of attendees and sponsors into ongoing supporters.
• Lead the Museum’s foundation and institutional giving strategy, identifying funding opportunities, prioritizing prospects, developing funder relationships, and overseeing proposals, reporting, and stewardship in collaboration with advancement staff.
• Oversee the execution of annual giving, donor stewardship, gift processing and acknowledgements, direct mail, giving days, and other fundraising initiatives, ensuring effective coordination of responsibilities and alignment with fundraising goals.
• Ensure effective donor communications, proposals, donor database management, prospect tracking, and fundraising reporting to support donor engagement, informed decision-making, and fundraising goals.

Capital Campaign:

• Lead campaign implementation and fundraising activities in partnership with the Executive Director, campaign leadership, Board, and campaign counsel, advancing campaign priorities and donor commitments.
• Manage the campaign prospect pipeline, coordinating cultivation, solicitation, follow-up, and stewardship in collaboration with the Executive Director and other campaign leaders.
• Coordinate campaign proposals, donor materials, pledge documentation, tracking, and progress reporting.
• Support Board members and campaign volunteers in donor outreach and develop strategies to transition campaign donors into ongoing Museum supporters.

Marketing and Communications:

• Provide strategic direction for aligning marketing and communications with fundraising priorities and institutional goals.
• Partner with the Development & Communications Manager, who leads marketing and communications strategy and execution, including brand management, content development, public relations, and promotional activities.
• Collaborate on donor communications, fundraising messaging, campaign materials, and storytelling to strengthen donor engagement and philanthropic support.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of advancement-related communications and collaborate with the Development & Communications Manager on strategies to strengthen donor participation and fundraising results.

Staff and Program Management:

• Supervise and develop staff, providing clear goals, direction, accountability, and support.
• Lead the advancement team’s priorities and workflow to ensure effective execution of fundraising initiatives.
• Strengthen the systems, processes, and infrastructure needed to support a growing advancement program.
• Manage the advancement budget and monitor fundraising performance, reporting progress to the Executive Director and Board.
• Evaluate staffing and resources as the advancement program grows and recommend future capacity needs.

Board and Committee Engagement:

• Serve as the primary staff liaison to the Development Committee, guiding priorities, meetings, and follow-through.
• Partner with the Development & Communications Manager to support the Marketing Committee and align marketing and communications initiatives with institutional and advancement priorities.
• Engage and equip Board and Development Committee members to actively support donor cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship.
• Provide regular advancement updates to the Board and foster a strong culture of philanthropy across Board, staff, and volunteers.

Qualifications

• At least six years of progressive experience in nonprofit fundraising, advancement, or philanthropy, with demonstrated success in donor engagement, major gifts, and fundraising strategy. Eight or more years of experience preferred.
• Proven success cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding major gifts, with experience managing a portfolio of donors and prospective donors.
• Experience developing and implementing fundraising strategies, establishing goals, and evaluating results across multiple revenue sources.
• Experience working with nonprofit boards, committees, volunteers, and organizational leaders to advance fundraising priorities.
• Experience supervising and developing staff, setting priorities, and managing competing demands in a collaborative environment.
• Strong communication, relationship-building, organizational, and analytical skills, including the ability to use donor data and performance metrics to guide fundraising decisions.
• Experience with capital campaigns preferred.
• Occasional evening and weekend availability is required for Museum events, donor engagement, and Board activities.

Compensation and Benefits:

• Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance (LCM pays 100% of employee only plan)
• Three weeks paid vacation (Accrued).
• 120 hours of paid sick leave (Accrued).
• Free downtown parking.
• Starting salary range: $85,000 - $95,000, commensurate with experience and qualifications.

Lexington Children’s Museum is an equal opportunity employer.

All employment offers are contingent upon passing a criminal background check. This position will remain open until filled.