Vice President of Development

Colorado Psychiatric; Fort Collins, Northern (CO, KY); Hybrid; USD 250,000 - 315,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision plans

Life Insurance

Retirement plans

Job summary

Colorado State University Foundation seeks a Vice President of Development in Fort Collins to lead major and principal gifts, driving donor-centric strategy and revenue growth for CSU’s colleges and priorities. You will guide the development program and oversee a portfolio of 25–50 prospects with gifts of $1,000,000+.

Reporting to the President & CEO, this role leads the Development Leadership Team, collaborates with CSU deans and unit leaders, and develops annual fundraising plans to advance

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business, communications, marketing or related field.
• 10+ years of progressively responsible development leadership experience.
• 8+ years supervising professional staff, including hiring and evaluating performance.
• Demonstrated success in major/principal gifts and gifts of $1,000,000+.
• Valid driver’s license and ability to travel and work non-standard hours.

Responsibilities

• Supervise a senior team responsible for major and principal gifts strategy and stewardship.
• Develop annual and multi-year fundraising plans for colleges and units.
• Build partnerships with CSU deans, VPs and unit leaders as a key liaison.
• Lead donor-centric solicitations and maintain knowledge of university priorities.
• Collaborate with Prospect Management to monitor gift pipeline and forecasts.
• Participate on CSUF Executive Leadership team and assist in planning and management.
• Manage a portfolio of 25–50 prospects with gifts of $1,000,000+.
• Oversee budgeting, administration, and development program coordination.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Skills

Leadership

Fundraising strategy

Donor relations

Communication

Strategic planning

Travel readiness

Education

Bachelor’s degree in business/communications/marketing or related field

Master’s degree or CFRE (preferred)

Tools

CRM systems

Donor management software

Job description

Position Summary

The CSU Foundation is actively seeking highly-qualified candidates for our Vice President of Development position. This role oversees the major and principal gift fundraising activities in support of Colorado State University’s colleges, units, campus priorities and initiatives. The Vice President will provide leadership to the comprehensive development program and play a key role in revenue generation through donor centric strategy. Working in close collaboration with the CSU Foundation President & CEO, CSU Deans, Vice Presidents, Provost and other unit leads, the Vice President of Development ensures that major fundraising efforts address the Foundation’s goals and university priorities. The vice President leads the annual fundraising planning process in collaboration with unit leadership to establish work plans that outline priorities and goals for individual development officers.

Reporting to the President & CEO, the Vice President of Development is a member of the Executive Leadership Team and leads the Development Leadership Team, with five direct reports overseeing 17 functional units.

Organizational Overview

Located in the beautiful town of Fort Collins, Colorado State University is a premier land-grant university with world-class programs in education, outreach, and research. CSU has a student body of over 34,000 students, 271,911 living alumni, and annual research expenditures exceeding $613 million.

The Colorado State University Foundation (CSUF) was founded in 1970 and is the official non-profit perpetuity partner for Colorado State University. The CSU Foundation is in the midst of exciting growth as the University Advancement division of CSU recently transitioned to the Foundation, growing the organization to 170 employees. This merger has allowed us to more effectively serve our donors, alumni, and stakeholders with a unified structure, strengthen accountability, and build the capacity to scale our fundraising enterprise. With one of the leading development teams in the country, we most recently achieved our highest fundraising year to date at $231 million.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Supervise a senior-level team responsible for the strategy, goal setting, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of major and principal level gifts for colleges and units.
• Develop annual and multi-year fundraising strategies for colleges and units to support goals and advance key University priorities and initiatives.
• Develop strong partnerships and relationships with CSU deans, VPs and unit leaders, serving as a key liaison to the CSU Foundation.
• Maintain knowledge of all priorities within the University, utilizing best practices to lead strategy development for donor-centric solicitations.
• Collaborate with Prospect Management and Research to monitor the gift pipeline and provide quarterly, year-end and campaign forecasts, reports, and analysis.
• Participate as a key member of the CSUF Executive Leadership team. Assist in broader divisional and campaign planning, administration, and management.
• Carry a portfolio of 25-50 prospects capable of $1,000,000+ gifts utilizing the tenets of moves management.
• Responsible for the strategic visioning and ongoing development, management, coordination and administration of an effective college-wide fundraising program.
• Allocate, track, manage and deploy an operating budget.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Position Information

• Position Title: Vice President of Development
• Organization Name: Colorado State University Foundation
• Reports To: President and CEO
• Employment Type: Full-time
• FLSA Status: Exempt
• Location: Fort Collins
• Salary Range: $250,000 - $315,000 annually
• Priority Consideration Date: October 11, 2026

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution in business, communications, marketing or related field
• Minimum of 10 years progressively responsible development leadership experience
• Minimum of 8 years of experience supervising and mentoring full-time, professional staff, including hiring, training, and evaluation of performance
• Demonstrated expertise and measurable success in conceptualizing, designing and implementing a dynamic fundraising program with emphasis on major and principal gifts
• Demonstrated success in acquiring gifts of $1,000,000 or more
• Must have a valid driver’s license or the ability to obtain a driver’s license by the employment start date
• Ability to work non-standard hours, including nights and/or weekends, as needed, and travel in and out of the state

Preferred Qualifications

• Advancement leadership experience and verifiable, demonstrated success in fundraising in support of an institution of higher education
• Highly developed organizational and leadership skills and extensive supervisory experience of professional staff with the ability to effectively manage performance
• Verified exceptional communication skills – both written and verbal – and the ability to effectively communicate the mission and vision of the CSU Foundation
• Experience in managing complex, multi-disciplinary fundraising projects
• Experience building successful, productive relationships with top university administrators, deans and leadership volunteers
• Demonstrated track record of being donor centric, building donor relationships, working collaboratively, strategically, and with integrity
• Possesses a strong knowledge of principles, ethics and practices of successful fundraising
• Demonstrated success as a senior leader in a collaborative work environment including; team building and motivating others through effective communication, modeling appropriate behavior, and optimism
• A strong fiscal acumen with experience working with budgets and financial processes
• Master’s Degree, Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) or other relevant professional certification
• Experience with CRM and donor management systems

As an employer of choice, the CSU Foundation offers a competitive benefits package including medical, dental and vision plans, CSUF-sponsored life insurance, an employee assistance program, a voluntary 403(b) tax deferred annuity retirement plan option and a 401(a) defined contribution retirement plan where 12% of the annual salary is contributed at no cost to the employee, with a two-year vesting schedule.

CSU Foundation is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) it is our policy to provide reasonable accommodation when requested by a qualified applicant or employee with a disability unless such accommodation would cause undue hardship.