Director of Alumni Engagement

St. Stephen's Episcopal School; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

St. Stephen's Episcopal School is seeking a Director of Alumni Engagement to provide strategic leadership for a global alumni program, fostering lifelong relationships and meaningful involvement across 7,500+ alumni.

The role oversees programs, communications, volunteers, events, and engagement opportunities aligned with the school’s mission and priorities. The role requires 5+ years in advancement/alumni engagement, a bachelor’s degree, and exceptional communication.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree is required.
• 5+ years of advancement/alumni engagement experience.
• Experience in an independent school or college/university setting preferred.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Develop and lead a comprehensive alumni engagement strategy.
• Oversee volunteer recruitment, stewardship, and program governance with the Spartan Alumni Association Board.
• Plan and manage alumni events, reunions, regional programs, and affinity-based initiatives.
• Collaborate with Advancement, Marketing, and Annual Giving to drive engagement and donor participation.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Alumni engagement

Volunteer management

Event planning

Communications

Data analytics

CRM tools

Education

Bachelor's degree in a relevant field

Tools

Google Workspace

CRM systems

Event management platforms

Data analytics tools

Job description

Job Summary

The Director of Alumni Engagement provides strategic leadership for a comprehensive alumni engagement program designed to foster lifelong, meaningful relationships between St. Stephen’s Episcopal School and its more than 7,500 alumni worldwide. This position oversees the development and execution of programs, communications, volunteer structures, and engagement opportunities that strengthen alumni affinity, participation, and philanthropy in support of the school’s mission and institutional priorities.

Duties and Responsibilities

Volunteer Recruitment and Management

• Identify, qualify, and help engage alumni volunteers, advocates, and prospective donors through relationship-building and strategic outreach with a focus on in person visits.
• Provide leadership and guidance to volunteers to increase alumni engagement and advance St. Stephen’s mission, including staff liaison to the Spartan Alumni Association Board. Giving:

Giving

• Develop engagement opportunities and communications strategies that support alumni giving and long-term donor pipeline development.
• Work collaboratively with the Director of Annual Giving to identify, recruit and train alumni annual giving volunteers and to champion alumni annual giving fundraising strategies and goals that annually grow the number of alumni donors.
• Solicit gifts when visiting with alumni and manage a donor portfolio of alumni prospects.

Event Management

• Oversee and design events and experiences that deepen alumni connection to the school, foster meaningful peer relationships, and support long-term engagement and philanthropic participation.
• Collaborate with Advancement colleagues to develop and execute a comprehensive calendar of alumni engagement opportunities, including Reunion Weekend, regional events, networking programs, campus events, volunteer gatherings, and affinity-based programming.
• Identify opportunities to integrate current students into alumni programming.

Communications

• In collaboration with Director of Advancement and Director of Marketing and Communications, create and manage an alumni communication and segmented marketing plan designed to increase connection, participation, and affinity across alumni constituencies.
• Oversee the creation and distribution of alumni communications, including The Hill e-newsletter, invitations, save-the-dates, social media content, alumni updates, obituaries, and other engagement materials.
• Ensure alumni communications and programming consistently reinforce the impact of philanthropy and the value of alumni participation and support.

Alumni Recognition and Stewardship

• In partnership with the Spartan Alumni Association Board and Director of Advancement, oversee the nomination and selection process for alumni recognition awards.
• Develop thoughtful stewardship and recognition strategies that celebrate alumni achievement, volunteerism, engagement, and philanthropy.

Management and Administration

• Track and evaluate the success of alumni engagement efforts through metrics such as event attendance, participation rates, and alumni feedback.
• Supervise and mentor Alumni Engagement Officer.
• Manage the alumni engagement budget and ensure effective stewardship of resources.
• Maintain accurate alumni engagement records and support effective use of the school’s constituent database and engagement tracking systems.
• Perform other related duties as assigned.

Community

• In alignment with the school's mission and values, employees are expected to collaborate with integrity, promote respect and inclusion, contribute to a vibrant, caring school community, and demonstrate the following behaviors in the performance of their duties.

Supervisory Responsibilities

• Supervises the Alumni Engagement Officer.

Required Skills and Abilities

• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills with the ability to inspire engagement across diverse constituencies.
• Demonstrated ability to think strategically about relationship-building, community engagement, and philanthropic culture.
• Strong leadership, collaboration, volunteer management, and supervisory skills.
• Excellent organizational and project management abilities, with strong attention to detail and the capacity to manage multiple priorities simultaneously.
• Analytical mindset with experience using engagement metrics and data to inform strategy and decision-making.
• Understanding of advancement best practices, including the interconnected roles of alumni engagement, communications, annual giving, stewardship, and donor pipeline development.
• Proficiency in Google Workspace/G-Suite, constituent databases/CRMs, event management platforms, and digital communication tools.
• Commitment to the mission and values of St. Stephen’s Episcopal School and to fostering a welcoming and inclusive community.

Required Education and Experience

• Bachelor's degree required.
• 5+ years of experience with a proven track record in advancement/alumni engagement; annual giving experience highly desirable; experience in an independent school or college/university setting strongly preferred.