Director of Major Gifts

Job Description

Director of Major Gifts

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Hybrid Employment

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Pratt Institute

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Brooklyn, NY

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Pratt Institute educates artists and creative professionals who shape the world we live in. Consistently ranked among the world’s leading art, design, and architecture schools, Pratt offers undergraduate and graduate programs across art, design, architecture, liberal arts and sciences, and information studies. Its vibrant community connects talented students with distinguished faculty who are active practitioners, combining rigorous inquiry with hands-on learning to prepare graduates for meaningful careers and creative leadership.

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Pratt is entering an exciting period of philanthropic growth through an ambitious comprehensive campaign with a working goal of $100 million. Aligned with the Institute’s 2025–2030 strategic plan, Setting the Standard, the campaign will advance student opportunity, faculty success, and transformative investments in infrastructure and campus spaces. The Director of Major Gifts will play a central role in this effort, building donor relationships and securing support that strengthens Pratt’s operating and endowment resources and helps make the Institute more accessible, resilient, and sustainable.

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Pratt seeks an accomplished, strategic, and relationship-driven Director of Major Gifts (Director) to join the Institutional Advancement team. Reporting to the Senior Director of Major Gifts, the Director will be responsible for identifying, cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding individuals capable of making significant philanthropic investments in Pratt’s mission, with responsibility for developing relationships with alumni, families, and friends of the institute in key local and international markets.

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The ideal candidate will manage and strategically develop a portfolio of approximately 75 to 100 major gift prospects and donors, with an emphasis on individuals capable of making gifts of five-figures or more and the potential to secure six- and seven-figure commitments. They will guide relationships through the full philanthropic lifecycle: identification, qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship. A seasoned frontline fundraiser, the Director will build meaningful relationships with individuals and develop strategies that connect their philanthropic interests with Pratt’s institutional priorities.

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The successful candidate will bring significant experience securing major gifts, excellent relationship-building and communication skills, cultural awareness, sound judgment, and the ability to operate independently while collaborating effectively across a complex academic institution.

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Pratt Institute has retained Freeman Philanthropic Services, LLC to assist with this significant recruitment. Please send all confidential inquiries, applications, and nominations directly to Freeman Philanthropic Services via e-mail at View email address on ziprecruiter.com .