Campaign Assistant and Alumni Relations Specialist

The Campaign Assistant and Alumni Relations Specialist’s primary responsibility will be to assist in planning, coordinating, and executing various activities related to the Ventura College Foundation Campaign, a multi-year fundraising campaign currently in the planning phase, while developing and coordinating alum programs and services designed to foster and strengthen the relationship between Ventura College and its alums.

Under the supervision of the Director of Philanthropy, the Campaign Assistant will provide essential support and assistance to the development department to ensure the success of the Ventura College Foundation Campaign. Furthermore, they will work with the college, academic departments, and athletic department to enhance alumni programming to aid, assist them in reaching approved fundraising goals, and seek out where synergies exist with alumni programming in order to steward and generate philanthropic support for the Ventura College Foundation now and in the future. As the program grows, the assigned duties and roles of the Campaign Assistant and Alumni Relations Specialist will evolve to meet those changing needs.

Excellent opportunity for someone seeking non-profit work experience as a full-time employee for the Ventura College Foundation. The ideal candidate will be a strong, collaborative, energetic individual who must be able to work with a variety of people (vendors, VC campus, students, board, donors & community) and meet deadlines when assigned. If you like being around exciting people that are enthusiastic about their work, then the Ventura College Foundation would be a good match for you.

JOB DUTIES

Campaign Assistant (approximately 65%)

• Provide administrative support to the Executive Director and Director of Philanthropy, including budget preparation, expense reporting, invoice/contract routing and processing, travel and meeting coordination, proactive calendar management, Raiser’s Edge data input and report generation, and file organization and optimization, etc.
• Become sufficiently informed about the Foundation and Campaign to answer questions from volunteers and staff concerning the campaign plans.
• Assist Director of Philanthropy with donor correspondence and gift acknowledgements, special mailings, preparation of donor packets and proposals, and creation of reports and presentations.
• Serve as point of entry for communication and coordination between the Executive Director and Director of Philanthropy, and campaign-related committees.
• Assist the Executive Director and Director of Philanthropy to facilitate Campaign Committee meetings, including date and location scheduling, attendance, agenda and materials preparation, and taking meeting minutes.
• Assist the Executive Director and Director of Philanthropy to develop and maintain an accurate report of campaign progress to date.
• Assist Database Manager to conduct prospect research in support of the Campaign and the Major Gifts Program, as requested by the Executive Director and Director of Philanthropy. 
• Assist Database Manager to prepare written reports including biographical and business information, financial assets, areas of interest and philanthropic support, and affiliations
• Maintain Raiser’s Edge database specific to prospect research
• Other duties and responsibilities may be assigned.

Alumni Relations (approximately 35%)

• With the Director of Philanthropy’s direction, position will develop and build a comprehensive alumni engagement strategy and program for the Ventura College Foundation to promote alumni relations designed to connect alumni through academic channels such as programs/departments/college with the goal to gain their philanthropic support for the Ventura College Foundation.
• Work closely with Ventura College alumni to develop outreach opportunities that build awareness among corporations and individuals, with the goal of cultivating existing relationships and developing new relationships with local alumni and businesses to support and inspire philanthropic support for the Ventura College Foundation.
• Promote and foster effective alumni relations through continuing written communication and personal contact with constituent groups.
• Perform necessary administrative functions such as record keeping, reports, correspondence, program budget oversight and contractual arrangements, as necessary.
• Plan, coordinate and schedule all logistical details and makes necessary arrangements for programs and/or services in assigned area of responsibility. Continually evaluate overall events program for success, identify and resolve issues, and make recommendations for improvement with the VC Foundation staff.
• Identify, cultivate, and steward alumni and volunteers. Helps current volunteer leadership to identify potential new volunteers and future leadership.
• Coordinate and produce reports, proposals, and analyses for management, periodic reports to reflect relevant data gathering and analysis, and post-event reports and recommendations.
• Coordinate with Event Specialist on alumni related events to coordinate including but not limited to: sticking to timelines, booking venues and vendors, generating invitation lists, mailing invitations, monitoring RSVPs, checking supply inventory, prepping event materials, and event set up.
• Assist the development department to reach its fundraising goals.
• Assist in managing event budgets and ensures expenses are tracked to budget.
• Ensure staffing and volunteers have the resources, training, and support needed in preparation for fulfilling their roles.
• Represent the VC Foundation at events, including during evening and weekend events. It’s expected that the staff member will be present for alumni events.
• Assist in follow-up communications with vendors, donors, sponsors, and others after alumni events are complete.
• Support effective working relationships with students, donors, board members, VC campus faculty & staff, vendors, volunteers, and VC Foundation representatives to nurture their connection to the Foundation and portray a positive image of the organization.
• Duties and role will adapt to growth of program to ensure goals are met.
• Perform miscellaneous job-related duties as assigned.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• Any combination equivalent to:
• Bachelor’s degree or Associate’s degree with two years of community or education-based experience.
• Minimum of 2 years of nonprofit or higher education administration experience.
• Minimum of 2 years’ experience in event management and communications.
• Valid CA driver’s license.

PREFERRED EDUCATION/TRAINING, EXPERIENCE, SKILLS

• Advanced degree preferred.
• Previous experience in fundraising, event planning, or nonprofit organizations is preferred.
• Spanish speaker.

KNOWLEDGE OF:

• Strong proficiency in MS Office programs, especially in MS Word (mail merge skills required) and spreadsheet management using MS Excel.
• Customer relationship management software proficiency.
• Adobe Acrobat proficiency.

ABILITIES

Exceptional customer service. Ability to deal effectively and tactfully with a wide variety of people in correspondence, on the telephone, and in person.

Strong verbal and interpersonal communications skills.

Excellent research, writing and editing skills (writing sample may be requested).

Organized and efficient, capable of managing multiple projects with competing priorities to the highest standards in a timely manner while remaining flexible and having fun.

Proactive self-starter requiring minimal supervision, but also works well on team.

Excellent attention to detail, data entry accuracy with the ability to meet daily, weekly, and monthly deadlines consistently.

Email proficiency.

Professional in demeanor and conduct. Ability to maintain strict confidentiality of donor and organization information.

THE FINE PRINT

• Full-time position: 40 hours per week
• Compensation: Salary will be commensurate with experience; Salary range: $27-$30 per hour; plus fully paid medical, dental, and vision benefits; 401K plan, and CALPERS retirement plan benefits that includes contribution by the Foundation.
• Supplemental insurance benefits through Aflac.
• Paid time off includes: 17 paid holidays, two floating holidays, two weeks of accrued vacation a year, and Winter Holiday Break as aligned with the Ventura County Community College District’s Calendar (typically Christmas Eve – New Year’s Day); two weeks of sick time.

TO APPLY

Please email Gerry Pantoja, Director of Philanthropy, ([email protected]) your cover letter and resume. Only applicants who submit both items will be considered for the position.

• No calls please, only applicants selected for interviews will be contacted. Applications will be accepted until position is filled. Web site: https://venturacollegefoundation.org      

Ventura College Foundation