Donor Engagement & Events Coordinator

Socket.dev; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 30,000 - 39,000; Full time

Job summary

SAIC, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, seeks a Donor Relations and Engagement Coordinator to support the Office of Advancement. You will coordinate donor, alumni, and institutional engagement activities, manage logistics for events, prepare materials, and provide onsite and administrative support under leadership supervision.

The role emphasizes event execution, budget tracking, and stewardship communications, with collaboration across departments.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or current enrollment in a bachelor’s degree program.
• One to two years of experience in administrative support, event coordination, hospitality, customer service, or a related area.
• Experience using Microsoft Office and Google Workspace.
• Ability to work occasional evenings and weekends to support events.
• Experience working in a fundraising, advancement, nonprofit, higher education, arts, or cultural organization.
• Experience using a customer relationship management or donor database system
• Strong organizational, time-management skills, attention to detail and accuracy.
• Ability to manage multiple assignments and meet established deadlines.
• Effective written and verbal communication skills.
• Strong interpersonal and customer-service skills.
• Ability to interact professionally with donors, alumni, guests, vendors, and colleagues.
• Ability to follow established procedures and work both independently and collaboratively.
• Ability to exercise discretion when handling confidential donor and institutional information.
• Ability to adapt to changing priorities and respond calmly to event-related needs.
• Basic knowledge of event coordination and administrative practices.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office and Google Workspace.
• Ability to learn and accurately use Advancement databases and other institutional systems.

Responsibilities

• Coordinates logistical arrangements for donor, alumni, and institutional events, including room reservations, catering requests, and campus service submissions.
• Maintains event calendars, timelines, task lists, and other tracking documents to support the timely completion of event-related activities.
• Tracks event registrations, RSVPs, guest lists, attendance, and other participation information.
• Prepares and organizes event materials, including invitations, name tags, signage, programs, and printed collateral.
• Conducts vendor research, gathers cost estimates, and assists with coordinating vendor services and deliverables.
• Provides onsite support for event setup, registration, guest assistance, event execution, and breakdown.
• Responds to routine event-related questions and communicates logistical information to guests, vendors, and internal partners.
• Assists with invoice processing, purchasing documentation, and basic budget tracking in coordination with team members.
• Provides production and administrative support for donor stewardship initiatives, including mailings and materials preparation.
• Enters and updates event, donor, and engagement information in Advancement systems and databases.
• Organizes and maintains accurate electronic and physical files related to events, donor relations, and stewardship activities.
• Performs other related duties as assigned to support the goals and priorities of the Office of Advancement.

Skills

Microsoft Office

Google Workspace

Event coordination

Customer service

Donor databases

Communication skills

Team collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree

Current student

Tools

CRM system

Advancement databases

Microsoft Excel

Job description

SAIC, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, seeks a Donor Relations and Engagement Coordinator to support the Office of Advancement. You will coordinate donor, alumni, and institutional engagement activities, manage logistics for events, prepare materials, and provide onsite and administrative support under leadership supervision.

The role emphasizes event execution, budget tracking, and stewardship communications, with collaboration across departments.