Chief Advancement Officer
Location
Santa Barbara, CA | United States
Job description
Founded in 1933 Laguna Blanca is a co-educational, independent school in Santa Barbara, CA. With its lower school campus in Montecito and its middle and upper schools in Hope Ranch, Laguna Blanca serves 430 students in kindergarten through twelfth grade. The school is known for providing students with an excellent education and for its innovative, highly relational teaching faculty. Families appreciate the warmth, inclusiveness, and energy of the school community. As Laguna Blanca finalizes its strategic plan, the head of school is looking for a strategic partner to reimagine the school’s institutional advancement program in support of the school’s mission, brand, and value proposition. To learn more about the school, please visit
The Opportunity
The Chief Advancement Officer (CAO) is responsible for all activities related to planning, managing, and executing a comprehensive, diversified, and strategic advancement and communications effort that sustains and grows revenues from all constituents, including individual donors, corporate and foundation giving, planned giving, student enrollment and retention, and special events. The CAO is responsible for the departmental performance, direction, and success of admissions, development, alumni relations, communications and marketing, and community outreach. The successful candidate will provide supervisory support to all personnel in these areas. The CAO serves as a strategic partner to the Head of School and is a member of the senior leadership team. To learn more about the school and its mission, please visit
Essential Responsibilities
Development and Revenue Generation
- Design and implement a comprehensive capital campaign as needed to support campus development, current and future capital and endowment needs in support of the Strategic plan
- Partner with the director of development to oversee fundraising initiatives, including annual fund and planned giving programs
- Provide leadership and support to all fundraising special events developed to support the school's annual fund and special projects
- Serve as a strategic partner to the head of school and liaison to the Board of Trustees
- Manage a small portfolio of prospective and current donors to the school
- Provide timely and accurate reporting to the board of trustees in partnership with the Head of School and Chief Financial Officer
- Ensure the development and implementation of effective data management systems and a program operations across all departments
Admissions and Enrollment
- Provide leadership and support for Admissions, working closely with the Director of Admissions to increase student enrollment and to develop new markets
- Work closely with the director of admissions to implement a comprehensive marketing plan for the recruitment of new families
- Coordinate with Admissions and the school's academic leaders to implement a strategy to increase student retention
Communications and Marketing
- Implement and oversee a multifaceted communication strategy, including the use of email, website, social media platforms, and print media to raise community awareness and messaging about the school's success stories, news, and events
- Partner with the director of communications to coordinate all institutional press releases
- Represent the school to the media as needed and as assigned by the head of school
- Partner with the Chief Financial Officer and business office to sustain efficient effective and transparent Financial tracking and reporting of processes
- Develop and hone the institution’s voice separately from the head of school’s voice in written communications
Alumni and Community Relations
- Oversee the development of the ongoing implementation of a comprehensive alumni relations program for Laguna Blanca including reunions the alumni magazine and other related activities
- Develop and maintain community relations with local city officials and the greater Santa Barbara community participating in such events as may be necessary to support the advancement of Laguna Blanca school and its mission
- Maintain memberships with local and Regional professional associations that may help further the development of Laguna Blanca School including the areas Chambers of Commerce Business Development Board, community alliances, education commissions, and other community Partnerships
Attributes, Skills, and Experience
- Highly collaborative leader with the ability to bring teams together, define and communicate the school’s priorities and goals, and cultivate a cohesive work culture
- Strong interpersonal skills with demonstrated commitment to the Laguna Blanca community and its mission
- A commitment to be actively involved in the life of the school and broader community
- Knowledge of best practices in advancement within an independent school setting and deep experience in one or more of the following areas, including annual and major gift fundraising, marketing and communications, admissions, and enrollment management
- Strong critical thinking skills including the ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions
- Extensive experience with a knowledge of fundraising software such as Raiser's Edge as well as technology platforms like Microsoft Office or Google Suite and other business applications
- Demonstrated administrative and advisory skills, excellent listening skills, the ability to inspire others, and humility
- A self-starter with the ability to maintain a positive mindset and high level of energy while managing a variety of tasks and projects
- Experience in a capital campaign setting is preferred but not required
The Salary range for this role is $160,000 - $190,000 and is dependent upon years of experience.
Laguna Blanca School does not discriminate based on gender, race, color, national origin, religion, creed, age, disability, marital or familial status, sexual orientation, veteran status, or any characteristic that is legally protected under applicable local, state, or federal law. This nondiscrimination policy includes but is not limited to admission, financial aid, educational programs, athletics, and employment.
Interested candidates, please contact [email protected]
All inquiries are treated as confidential.
Peter G. Hamilton 617-620-9268
Christian G. Henry 857-285-3364
Job tags
Salary
$160k - $190k
