Executive Director of Museum Development

Job Description
Department:
College Advancement and Campaigning Pay Rate Type:
Salary Employee Type:
Job Summary:

All interested candidates, nominations, and inquiries can be directed to Mercedes Chacón Vance and Jevon Walton at View email address on click.appcast.io, or apply here via Wittkieffer.

ALL applicants must apply via Wittkieffer, and any submissions via the Colby website will not be considered.

Colby College (Waterville, Maine) and the Colby College Museum of Art seek an experienced, strategic, and inspirational Executive Director of Museum Development. The Executive Director will lead the planning and strategic execution of fundraising efforts that support current programming, as well as near-term plans for a transformational capital project and significantly expanded programming.

Colby's Dare Northward campaign is one of the single largest campaigns at a liberal arts college in history. After surpassing the original goal of $750M in November 2023, the Board of Trustees voted to extend the campaign to $1B to support the people, programs, and facilities that will position the College as one of the preeminent liberal arts colleges in the world. With an anonymous nine-figure gift to the sciences, Dare Northward has surpassed $1B and looks to complete its investments in financial aid, the sciences, and a Colby Museum expansion project.

The Colby College Museum of Art, including the Lunder Institute of American Art, continues to be one of the College's greatest assets. As one of the best college art museums in the country, the Colby College Museum of Art is renowned in the fields of American art and contemporary art. It remains at the forefront of its peers through an incredible collection, ground-breaking exhibitions, unique partnerships, and a deep commitment to the communities it serves. The Colby arts ecosystem also includes the Paul J. Schupf Art Center, Greene Block & Studios, and the Gordon Center for Creative and Performing Arts. Located in downtown Waterville, the Schupf Art Center includes the Colby Museum's Joan Dignam Schmaltz Gallery of Art, and the Greene Block + Studios is the home to the Lunder Institute of American Art.


Following the adoption of a new strategic plan, the Carolyn Muzzy Director of the Museum, Jacqueline Terrassa, and the Museum Board of Governors are actively planning future growth opportunities for both capital projects and enhanced programming. Achieving this vision will require a comprehensive fundraising initiative.

The Executive Director will be responsible for all aspects of fundraising and donor engagement for the museum. The new leader will be an experienced, senior advancement professional with a compelling combination of fundraising, campaign oversight, and program/personnel leadership experience and achievement. The ideal leader will demonstrate a personal track record of considerable success cultivating major and principal gifts and developing fundraising plans and driving success through individual and collaborative efforts.

Colby seeks an executive who has outstanding organizational and communication skills and demonstrated experience leading, managing, and continuously assessing and identifying opportunities to leverage visibility to secure philanthropic support. The selected candidate will have a record of success leading a comprehensive advancement program of similar scope and complexity. At least 10 years of envisioning, shaping, and implementing a successful philanthropic program, preferably with experience or familiarity with art and art communities, including demonstrated responsibility for initiating and closing major and principal gifts and leading a high-level fundraising initiative. The Executive Director will be a champion of the arts and understand and embody institutional values of honesty, integrity, and personal responsibility.

All applications, nominations, and inquiries are invited. Applications should include, as two separate documents, a CV or resume and a letter of interest addressing the themes in the leadership profile found at

WittKieffer is assisting Colby College in this search, which will remain open until an appointment is made. Application materials should be submitted using WittKieffer's candidate portal.

Nominations and inquiries can be directed to:


Mercedes Chacón Vance and Jevon Walton


View email address on click.appcast.io

Colby is a private, coeducational liberal arts college that admits students and makes employment decisions based on the individual's qualifications to contribute to Colby's educational objectives and institutional needs. Colby College does not discriminate in its educational programs or employment based on race, color, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, religion, national origin, age, marital status, genetic information, or military or veteran status. Colby is an equal opportunity employer and operates in accordance with federal and state laws regarding non-discrimination. Colby complies with Title IX, which prohibits discrimination based on sex in an institution's education programs and activities. Questions regarding

Title IX may be referred to Colby's Title IX coordinator or to the federal Office of Civil Rights. We encourage inquiries from candidates who will contribute to the diversity of our College, including its cultural and ethnic diversity.