Director of Development for Madison House

External Relations at the University of Virginia (UVA) is seeking a highly qualified candidate to join the Student and Family Philanthropy team as the Director of Development for Madison House. Madison House serves as the student-led volunteer center for the University of Virginia, coordinating volunteers, developing student leaders, cultivating community partnerships, and promoting a lifelong commitment to service. Working alongside community partners, Madison House connects students with meaningful opportunities that support community priorities while fostering their educational and civic development.

The University of Virginia has a strong and reputable advancement community, boasting effective, results-oriented, and resourceful professionals. Our community comprises a robust advancement organization, 12 University schools, and more than 25 University-related programs. We offer a wide variety of career opportunities, as well as an outstanding environment for professional growth and development.

Position Summary

Reporting to the Managing Director of Student and Family Philanthropy, with a dotted line to the Executive Director of Madison House, the Director of Development will play a key leadership role in a growing, highly integrated, and collaborative advancement team pursuing ambitious fundraising goals. This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced professional to make a valuable contribution in support of the missions of the University and Madison House.

This position is a central External Relations Development role and will work in close partnership with the Executive Director, staff, students, alumni, and volunteer leaders of Madison House. The Director of Development will serve as the primary frontline fundraiser for Madison House, with responsibility for identifying, cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding major-gift prospects and donors whose philanthropy can advance Madison House's student-led public service mission and long-term priorities.

The successful candidate will be an energetic and entrepreneurial fundraising professional with a demonstrated record of securing major gifts, building meaningful relationships, and translating organizational priorities into compelling philanthropic opportunities. They will bring a strong appreciation for student leadership, public service, community engagement, and the transformational impact of Madison House on students and the communities they serve.

Responsibilities

* Build and manage a portfolio of current and prospective major-gift donors, generally at the $100,000+ level, and move prospects toward giving levels that achieve annual and long-range fundraising goals for Madison House and the University.

* Develop and execute individualized cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies for assigned prospects, in partnership with the Managing Director of Student and Family Philanthropy, the Executive Director of Madison House, and other University leaders as appropriate.

* Travel nationally to identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward alumni, parents, friends, and community partners with the capacity and interest to support Madison House.

* Collaborate with Madison House leadership to identify and articulate philanthropic priorities, including support for student programs, access and participation, endowment growth, facilities or programmatic needs, and other strategic initiatives.

* Build productive working relationships with Madison House staff, student leaders, alumni volunteers, and members of the Madison House Board of Directors in support of fundraising and donor engagement efforts.

* Lead strategy for Madison House annual giving efforts in close partnership with UVA Annual Giving, developing coordinated solicitation plans, messaging, segmentation, and donor engagement strategies that strengthen annual support, retain and upgrade donors, and build the pipeline for future major gifts.

* Partner closely with colleagues across External Relations - including Annual Giving, Prospect Research, Corporate and Foundation Relations, Gift Planning, Principal Gifts, Donor Relations, and Communications - to develop and execute coordinated fundraising strategies that strengthen Madison House's donor pipeline, advance major-gift opportunities, and identify and pursue corporate and foundation funding aligned with Madison House priorities.

* Help identify opportunities to engage Madison House's broad and loyal alumni community, as well as parents, friends, foundations, corporations, and community partners, in support of the organization's mission.

* Support the development and execution of fundraising strategies that advance Madison House priorities, including prospect pipelines, gift tables, volunteer engagement, donor recognition, and targeted communications.

* Collaborate with Madison House staff and Advancement colleagues to ensure meaningful donor stewardship, including impact reporting, donor communications, student engagement opportunities, recognition…