Head of Advancement

SCHOOL PROFILE

Atlanta International School (AIS) is a private, non-profit school in the Buckhead area of Atlanta. We offer the full International Baccalaureate (IB) continuum to all students, from 3K through grade 12. The AIS community comprises over 90 nationalities who collectively speak more than 65 languages. Enrollment is currently 1,260+ students with approximately 900 families and 300+ employees. There are over 1,600 alumni in Atlanta, across the United States and in many cities and countries around the world.

Our mission is simple - To develop courageous leaders who shape their world for the better. The core values that drive our school are:

• The joy of learning and purposeful effort.
• Mutual respect and understanding in an intentionally inclusive and intercultural community.

The strong Academics at AIS are enriched by a world-class language acquisition program, which begins in The Early Learning Center (ELC) with a full-immersion preschool program. The Primary Learning Center (PLC) for students in 5K – Grade 5 is a dual immersion/language acquisition program. The Secondary School is comprised of Middle School (Grades 6 through 8) and Upper School (Grades 9 through 12).

Approximately 10% of the annual operating revenues of the school come from non-tuition revenue, which includes all forms of annual giving through our Eagle’s Fund, Georgia Goal SSO Tax Credit Program, our Spring Benefit and our Stand and Pledge for need-based Financial Aid. Major capital infrastructure investments are funded, periodically, through project-based capital campaigns.

The Advancement Office, led by the Head of Advancement and with the support of our Board of Trustees, Head of School and teams of community volunteers from across our parent and employee community is responsible for raising these critical funds -- without which AIS would not be able to fulfill its mission for the students entrusted to our care.

The Head of Advancement is tasked with growing this understanding and practice of giving back and philanthropy across the AIS community in alignment with the Mission and Core Values of our school. 

The Head of Advancement demonstrates the intercultural competence, empathy and curiosity to understand the myriad of perspectives to annual giving and philanthropy across the multi-national, multicultural, multilingual and multi-ethnic community that is AIS.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Vision

• A diverse, equitable, inclusive community is at the core of who we are as a school. We are committed to these values and they are vital to our mission of developing courageous leaders who shape the world for the better.
• We aspire to create a healthy and positive school climate and culture by providing the conditions necessary for every member of our community to feel seen, heard, treated fairly and protected.
• We act with courage and integrity as we actively build our intercultural competence across lines of difference and live by our core value of mutual understanding and equal respect in an intentionally inclusive, intercultural community.

POSITION DESCRIPTION

The Head of Advancement is responsible for creating, managing, and executing a comprehensive fundraising plan. This role will partner with Marketing and Communications to successfully advance the mission and values of AIS. The Head of Advancement articulates all campaign strategies, participates in the identification, cultivation and solicitation of donor prospects; oversees all advancement activities and acts as liaison between and broader community.

Serving as the Head of School’s chief advisor in matters relating to fundraising, the Head of Advancement is a member of the Senior Leadership Team (SLT), serves on relevant Board of Trustee committees, and takes responsibility for managing the schools funding priorities. The Head of Advancement will be responsible for directly supervising the Director of Annual Giving and Stewardship as well as the Director of Alumni Relations, as well as other members of the Advancement team as determined by the Head of School.

Start Date: February 2021

Reports To: Head of School

POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES

• Building a comprehensive fundraising program to include: annual, capital, planned, and special event giving.
• Overseeing advancement office personnel activities, including the recruitment, definition of job responsibilities, and performance review process of each Director, and other members of the team as needed.
• Partnering with advancement staff, head of school, SLT, marketing & communications, other senior staff/faculty and leadership-giving volunteers.
• Stewarding major donors and managing a portfolio of leadership gifts prospects, providing strategies for leadership prospects for the Head, and ensuring that timely steps are taken toward solicitation.
• Creating a strategic vision for the Advancement team to grow Annual Fund participation and alumni and parent engagement
• Ability to translate and make US style philanthropy accessible to stakeholders at AIS who have had little exposure to the idea of ongoing fundraising to a) familiarize and b) create increased traction and engagement for fundraising events, activities and campaigns.
• Working with the Board’s development committee to establish event and campaign-based fundraising strategies, policies, and plans.
• Strategizing community sources of funding through grants and corporations, both locally and nationally.
• Collaborating with the Director of Integrated Marketing Communications to address the school’s various communications needs.
• Overseeing alumni and parent communications around fundraising and providing vehicles for more effective board and staff communications.
• Developing a plan for alumni and parent relations which is systematic in its approach, addressing those who are positively disposed and looking for mechanisms to stay involved with the school.

REQUIRED EXPERIENCE/SKILLS

• 10+ years of fundraising experience, with a preference for school based experience and broad understanding of annual, capital, planned, and event giving.
• Proven ability to cultivate, solicit, and steward leadership gifts of $10,000 or more.
• Strong management and leadership skills, both strategic and operational, and a demonstrated ability to build, manage, mentor and motivate an effective team.
• Key collaborative skills to work effectively with a wide range of the school constituents, especially the Head of School, Board of Trustees, and parent volunteers.
• Ability to create collaborative relationships, meet, engage, and understand donor motivations in order to match the donors desired philanthropic impact and the schools needs.
• Ability to direct strategy and nimbly course-correct as necessary.
• Excellent written and oral communications, computer and research proficiency; experience with Raiser’s Edge preferred.
• Strong recommendations from a direct supervisor, board member, and a managed employee.
• Go getter attitude with a visible passion and enthusiasm for the role and a strong work ethic.
• Ability to design both a strategic and operational fundraising plan.

DIVERSITY STATEMENT

Atlanta International School is deeply committed to diversity among our staff and applicants of diverse backgrounds are strongly encouraged to apply.

TO APPLY

Please send a cover letter and resume/ CV as attachments to [email protected], using the position title as the subject line of your email. Example: Head of Advancement

Please also include the names, addresses and telephone numbers of referees which AIS may contact; these must include direct supervisors or the person in the position of chief responsibility for the evaluation of the applicant’s performance. AIS reserves the right to contact the writers of open references for confidential statements.

Closing date for applications: January 15, 2021

First Round Interviews: Weeks beginning Monday January 18

Finalist Interviews: Week beginning Monday January 25

AIS reserves the right to accelerate our process should a suitable, highly qualified candidate surface early in the process. We will contact those applicants whose skills and experience best match our needs. Due to the high volume of applications, we regret that we are not able to take or return phone calls regarding employment.