Director of Annual Giving

Manager, D27 (Associate Director 2)

Ramapo College of New Jersey is the state's premier public liberal arts college, where students build the confidence, skills, and perspective to thrive in a changing world. Located on a breathtaking 300-acre campus in the foothills of the Ramapo Mountains and just a short trip from New York City, Ramapo blends the best of both worlds: natural beauty, state-of-the-art facilities, and access to one of the world's most dynamic job markets.

With approximately 6,000 students, Ramapo offers a personalized, student-centered experience defined by a 16:1 student–faculty ratio, small classes, and faculty who mentor, challenge, and inspire. Students can explore over 40 undergraduate majors and a growing portfolio of graduate programs in fields such as Business Administration, Data Science, Nursing, Educational Leadership, Social Work, Special Education, and the Doctor of Nursing Practice. Across every discipline, Ramapo emphasizes hands-on learning through internships, co-ops, study abroad, faculty research, service projects, and real-world experiences that prepare students for meaningful careers.

Our campus is home to cutting-edge academic spaces, including the Anisfield School of Business, the Adler Center for Nursing Excellence, the Sharp Sustainability Education Center, the Berrie Center for Performing and Visual Arts, the Les Paul Music Studio, and the Peter P. Mercer Learning Commons. Ramapo's award-winning residence halls are consistently ranked among the best in New Jersey.

Nationally recognized for excellence and value, Ramapo is ranked #1 among New Jersey public colleges by College Choice, named a Best Regional University North by U.S. News & World Report, and celebrated by Kiplinger's, Money Magazine, Colleges of Distinction, and Victory Media's Military Friendly rankings.

At Ramapo, students don't just earn degrees; they discover their strengths, explore new possibilities, and build the foundation for bold futures.

Ramapo College of New Jersey has been recognized as a "Great College to Work For," where our employees are at the heart of everything we do. We foster an equitable and fair workplace where ideas are welcomed, contributions are valued, and individuals are encouraged to grow both professionally and personally. Employees benefit from meaningful work, opportunities for development, and the chance to make a lasting impact on students' lives every day.

At Ramapo College, we believe excellence is achieved through teamwork, respect, accountability, innovation, and a shared commitment to learning. Our all-hands-on deck culture requires leadership at all levels to ensure we achieve our mission, implement our goals, and invest in our future one student at a time. We are proud to offer a supportive environment that values well-being and continuous improvement. We believe in being bold, being kind, and being good teammates, making Ramapo not just a place to work, but a great place to belong.

Ramapo College offers outstanding benefits through the New Jersey State Benefits system, generous PTO, professional development opportunities, wellness programs, tuition discounts for employees and their dependents, and much more.

This is a full-time, managerial position and days of work and hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Occasional evening and weekend work may be required as job duties demand. Note: This position is in the "NL" category of employment (non-fixed work week), and individuals in this role have no claim or entitlement to time off or cash compensation for hours worked beyond their normal schedule. Compensatory time will not be granted for work done as an extension of the regular work day. It is the policy of the College to grant hour for hour compensatory time off, with advance approval, only when employees are required to work on a holiday. Time earned must be used within one fiscal year from the time it is earned.

All managerial employees at Ramapo College are responsible for overseeing the daily business activities, improving operational procedures, and ensuring the successful implementation of strategic initiatives. This role requires strong leadership, communication, and organizational skills, with a strong emphasis on personal and team accountability for outcomes.

Salary Range: $115,000-$126,000

Job Summary: Reporting to the Chief of Operations & Strategy for Institutional Advancement (COSIA), the Director of Annual Giving oversees the Ramapo College Foundation's annual giving efforts and events. A critical member of the Institutional Advancement team, the primary focus of this role is to build the philanthropic base and pipeline. Using multi-channel mass efforts - including mail, phone, email, social media, recurring gifts, payroll deductions, matching donations, giving days, and other creative strategies and technologies - the Director of Annual Giving will work to acquire new donors, recapture lapsed and lost donors, and retain and increase giving levels of current donors. The Director of Annual Giving leads these efforts across alumni, parents, friends, employees, retirees, and other constituencies as a key driver of philanthropic participation, pipeline growth, and unrestricted and restricted contributed revenue goals. In addition, the Director oversees the execution of Institutional Advancement/Foundation events, ensuring that the logistics, operations, budgets, vendor and venue coordination, and day-of execution reflects Ramapo College's brand, values, and philanthropic priorities.

Responsibilities:

• Devise and implement donor acquisition and recapture strategies for a variety of constituencies and funds.
• Devise and implement donor retention and increased giving strategies that provide a positive, impactful donor experience through cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship messaging.
• Ensure the accurate recording of appeals and other relevant data points in the CRM system (currently Raiser's Edge NXT). Make recommendations to the COSIA, use data to inform segmentation, response rates, ROI, donor trends and behaviors, and with a continuous improvement mindset, recommend adaptations to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of communications and appeals.
• Manage the staff member who is responsible for the annual fund, developing giving days, graduate legacy drives, and coordinating athletics fundraising, and direct their work to achieve annual performance and revenue targets.
• Oversee the logistics and operations of Institutional Advancement events. Ensure that events are planned for a seamless and positive attendee experience, meet revenue goals when applicable, and designed to strengthen long-term and robust relationships with alumni, donors, prospects, and other partners.
• Manage the staff member who is responsible for event logistics, and direct their work to achieve annual performance and revenue targets. Collaborate with colleagues who are responsible for event communications.
• Collaborate with colleagues in Alumni Experience & Engagement and Prospect Development to identify and engage segments of prospective donors. Collaborate with the frontline Development Officers and Prospect Development to identify donors with the potential for deeper engagement and coordinate a cohesive and positive donor journey.
• Staff Institutional Advancement events, which may take place on evenings or weekends.
• Other duties as assigned which are logical to the position.

Skills, Knowledge, Abilities:

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Strong interpersonal skills. Ability to work well with a wide range of alumni, donors, faculty, and staff with respect and collaboration.
• Ability to manage and coordinate multiple tasks, projects, and people simultaneously.
• Strong organizational and project management skills.
• Familiarity with donor segmentation, lifecycle fundraising, and pipeline development.
• Ability to analyze data and make recommendations.
• Ability to deliver work on time for deadlines.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree is required.
• A minimum of five years of experience in annual giving/fundraising, membership, or a similar field is required.
• Experience working with email marketing, digital fundraising tools, and direct mail required.
• Event planning and management experience preferred.
• Experience with Raiser's Edge NXT (preferred) or similar CRM.
• Experience managing, directing, and assessing staff and staff performance in a unionized environment strongly preferred.

EEO Statement:

Ramapo College is an Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. Ramapo has a long history of advocating, advising, and supporting diversity, equity, and inclusiveness. Examples can be found in its mission statement, strategic plans, degree and course offerings, community outreach programs, and other diversity programs. Ramapo's commitment to diversity and inclusion is infused across all facets of the College; where the environment is welcoming, dedicated to social justice, respectful of freedom of expression, focused on educating and having an ongoing conversation regarding cultural competence and the benefits and importance of diversity.