Philander Smith University seeks a dynamic, entrepreneurial, and externally focused leader to serve as the Assistant Vice President for Advancement and Strategic Partnerships within the Office of Institutional Advancement.
Reporting directly to the Vice President for Institutional Advancement, the Assistant Vice President will serve as the major gifts officer and play a senior leadership role in advancing the University’s philanthropic growth, external engagement strategy, and strategic partnership development. This position will lead efforts to cultivate transformational relationships with donors, corporations, foundations, community organizations, and public-sector partners to generate philanthropic investment, strategic collaborations, and mission-aligned growth opportunities.
The Assistant Vice President will serve as a key architect in expanding institutional advancement efforts while identifying innovative opportunities that strengthen the University’s financial sustainability, brand visibility, student success initiatives, and long-term strategic priorities.
The ideal candidate is a highly relational, results-driven advancement professional with demonstrated success in fundraising, partnership development, corporate engagement, and external relationship management.
Key Responsibilities:Advancement Leadership & Fundraising
- Partner with the Vice President for Institutional Advancement to develop and execute comprehensive advancement strategies aligned with the University’s strategic priorities.
- Build, manage, and grow a portfolio of major gift donors ($100,000+), corporate sponsors, foundation partners, and philanthropic prospects.
- Cultivate, solicit, and steward philanthropic investments in support of institutional priorities, including student success, scholarships, academic innovation, capital initiatives, and strategic growth.
- Support annual giving, major gifts, sponsorship strategy, campaign development, donor stewardship, and advancement initiatives.
- Develop compelling cases for support, donor proposals, presentations, and engagement strategies.
- Collaborate with advancement operations to ensure strong pipeline management, donor tracking, stewardship, and campaign execution.
- Develop and manage strategic partnerships with corporations, foundations, nonprofit organizations, civic entities, public agencies, and community stakeholders.
- Identify and structure partnerships that advance institutional priorities, including workforce development, internships, experiential learning, academic programming, community engagement, and institutional capacity-building.
- Expand corporate and foundation engagement to create sustainable funding opportunities and strategic collaborations.
- Support relationship-building with community leaders, philanthropic stakeholders, and mission-aligned external partners.
- Represent the University in external meetings, partnership discussions, and strategic engagement opportunities in coordination with the Vice President for Institutional Advancement.
- Identify innovative revenue-generating and mission-aligned partnership opportunities that support institutional sustainability and growth.
- Support advancement-related initiatives connected to capital projects, sponsorship development, campus enhancements, and strategic institutional priorities.
- Assist in developing partnership proposals, investment opportunities, and collaborative initiatives that expand institutional reach and impact.
- Monitor emerging philanthropic, corporate, and partnership trends to identify opportunities for institutional growth.
- Serve as a senior leader within the Office of Institutional Advancement and collaborate across the institution to advance fundraising and partnership objectives.
- Partner closely with Enrollment Management, Academic Affairs, Finance, Student Affairs, Athletics, and executive leadership to align advancement strategies with institutional needs.
- Support cross-functional execution of partnership opportunities from cultivation through implementation.
- Prepare executive briefings, reports, and recommendations for advancement leadership and senior institutional stakeholders.
Required
- Bachelor’s degree required; master’s degree preferred.
- Minimum of 5 years of progressively responsible experience in institutional advancement, fundraising, corporate relations, strategic partnerships, foundation relations, business development, or related fields.
- Demonstrated success securing philanthropic support, sponsorships, partnerships, or institutional investments.
- Strong knowledge of advancement strategy, donor cultivation, stewardship, and external engagement.
- Exceptional written, verbal, interpersonal, and presentation communication skills.
- Strong organizational leadership, project management, and relationship management capabilities.
- Ability to work effectively accross diverse internal and external stakeholder groups.
Preferred
- Experience in higher education, HBCUs, nonprofit leadership, or mission-driven organizations.
- Experience with major gifts, campaign development, corporate partnerships, foundation fundraising, or advancement leadership.
- Familiarity with public-private partnerships, workforce development initiatives, economic mobility strategies, or institutional growth initiatives.
- Experience using donor management or advancement CRM systems.
Success in this role may be measured by:
- Total philanthropic dollars raised
- Growth in major donor, corporate, and foundation pipelines
- Number and impact of strategic partnerships secured
- Sponsorship and partnership revenue generated
- Donor retention and stewardship effectiveness
- Advancement of strategic institutional initiatives through partnerships
- External engagement and institutional visibility outcomes
Reporting Relationship:
This position reports directly to the Vice President for Institutional Advancement and serves as a senior leader within the Office of Institutional Advancement.
Benefits:
- Dental insurance
- Employee assistance program
- Health insurance
- Health savings account
- Life insurance
- Paid time off
- Professional development assistance
- Retirement plan
- Tuition reimbursement
- Vision insurance
Philander Smith University is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate against applicants or employees based on age, race, sex, national origin, ethnicity, veteran status, or religion. The University is a smoke-free and drug-free work environment.
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What We Do
Founded in 1877, Philander Smith University is a small, privately supported, historically Black, four-year liberal arts institution located in Little Rock, Arkansas. Its mission is to graduate academically accomplished students, grounded as advocates for social justice, who are determined to change the world for the better.
