Director, Fundraising + Board Affairs

About Success Academy Charter Schools

As the highest-performing and fastest-growing charter school network in New York State, Success Academy Charter Schools (SA) is boldly reimagining K-12 public education. SA operates as the fourth largest school district in New York State and educates 22,000 children in many of New York City’s lowest-income neighborhoods. Its 59 schools are rigorous, engaging, and financially efficient, and SA scholars continue to achieve outstanding academic results: SA is ranked #1 in math and #2 in reading in the state. Further, for the last nine years, 95% of SA’s high school students pass at least 3 AP exams (compared to 25% nationally) and 100% have been accepted into 4-year colleges.

What SA has achieved in its first 20 years is extraordinary, but with the U.S. education system in crisis, SA is redoubling its efforts – scaling its work to expand educational excellence and prepare thousands more children. Next year, SA will expand to Florida with 5 new schools, setting a pathway for 15 schools in the Miami area over the next 10 years. In addition, SA is launching the Graduate Institute for School Management and Teaching as well as building a second K-12 campus in Queens, New York. To do this work, SA requires significant philanthropic support and investments, and it is seeking a Director of Advancement and Board Affairs to join as a senior member of its Advancement team.

Leadership

Eva Moskowitz, CEO and President of National Strategy and Advancement: Eva Moskowitz founded Success Academy Charter Schools in 2006. Eva’s experience as a teacher, college professor, elected official, Chair of the New York City Council’s Education Committee, and public-school parent make her uniquely qualified to effectively lead the organization in establishing high-performing schools and pioneering for educational excellence. She holds a bachelor’s degree from University of Pennsylvania, a Ph.D. in American history from Johns Hopkins University, and a Doctorate of Humane Letters from Tufts University.

Patricia Grad, Chief Advancement Officer: Patricia Grad leads the organization's fundraising, donor engagement, and advancement strategy, as well as its board relations. She has more than 25 years of experience in capital formation, strategic fundraising, and investor relations. Before joining Success Academy, she was Partner and Head of Investor Relations at Arsenal Capital Partners, a $10 billion middle-market private equity firm. Over the course of her career, she has raised more than $15 billion from institutional investors around the world, including public and corporate pension funds, family offices, insurance companies, and asset management firms. Patricia holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a bachelor's degree from Wesleyan University.

The Opportunity

Reporting to the Chief Advancement Officer and working closely with SA Founder and CEO, Eva Moskowitz, the Director of Advancement (Fundraising) and Board Affairs will serve as a close partner to help advance SA’s ambitious fundraising agenda as the organization enters its next chapter of growth. One of the important aspects of that agenda is institutionalizing and building SA’s boards, which include both a network board and two state-specific boards in New York and Florida. The Director will help shape board priorities, strengthen philanthropic engagement and governance, and refine the structure and connectivity needed for trustees to support SA’s mission and long-term goals. The successful Director will have the opportunity to deepen the culture of philanthropy for the Network Board, helping trustees play an increased role as donors and ambassadors for SA. In parallel, the Director will be responsible for a portfolio of individuals, corporations, and foundations, creating strategies for cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship. The role will also partner closely with SA's data & analytics, academic program, and fundraising services teams to ensure that each donor strategy is executed with fidelity, efficiency, and excellence.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary operational and strategic partner to SA’s central network board, New York board, and Florida boards
• Carry and further build a portfolio of major gift donors, personally driving identification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship
• Build a scalable Board Affairs operating model, including hiring and managing administrative support and ensuring high-quality execution of meeting preparation, Board decks and materials, required postings, logistics, records, and member communications
• Manage a small team to help with major gifts – coordinate workflow, prioritize operational efficiency, strengthen collaboration, and actively support and develop direct reports
• Use data as a primary tool, including tracking performance measures, monitoring results, and continuously evaluating the efficacy of the advancement program
• Strengthen collaboration with other SA departments to maximize efficient workflow, ensure alignment, and reinforce a culture of philanthropy and unwavering excellence
• Own and drive day-to-day progress toward ambitious fundraising goals, translating SA's institutional priorities into clear donor strategies, moves management strategies, and measurable activity

Qualifications

• Maturity, depth, and judgment to own high-stakes relationships with high-net-worth individuals, family offices, foundations, and other sophisticated stakeholders
• Proven experience in investor relations, capital formation, private banking, or nonprofit fundraising
• Passion for driving towards SA’s mission and commitment to our families and scholars, and a firm ideological commitment to excellence in K-12 education
• Experience working closely with governing boards, investment committees, senior advisory bodies, or other sophisticated stakeholders, with the judgment and discretion to navigate governance, institutional priorities, and high-profile relationships
• Strategic and hands-on leadership and management: able to think expansively about long-term growth while moving relationships, projects, and fundraising priorities forward, taking a systematic, process-led approach
• Executive presence and intellectual confidence to engage philanthropists, investors, founders, and board members as strategic peers, while representing SA credibly and compellingly
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to translate SA’s value proposition into persuasive cases for support

Education

• Bachelor’s degree required.

This search is being managed by McDermott + Bull Executive Search.