Major Gifts Officer, Cornell Law School

Cornell University welcomes candidates for the position of Major Gifts Officer, Cornell Law School in our Alumni Affairs and Development division, based in Ithaca, NY. This role presents an exceptional opportunity to contribute to the university's advancement efforts.

Cornell Law School seeks an experienced, collaborative, and results-oriented Major Gift Officer to join its Office of Alumni Affairs and Development. The Major Gift Officer will play a critical role in advancing the Law School’s academic mission by identifying, cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding individuals capable of making significant philanthropic investments in Cornell Law School.

Founded in 1887, Cornell Law School is a top-tier law school offering JD, LLM, and JSD programs and educating a diverse community of students from across the United States and around the world. The Law School combines rigorous theoretical and doctrinal teaching with innovative experiential education. Its faculty is consistently recognized among the nation’s leaders in scholarly productivity and influence, with strengths in areas including empirical legal studies, international and comparative law, and core areas of legal scholarship.

The Major Gift Officer will manage a portfolio of alumni, parents, and friends and develop strategic relationships that connect their interests and philanthropic goals with the Law School’s highest priorities. The position will work closely with the Dean, senior academic leaders, faculty, volunteers, and colleagues across Alumni Affairs and Development to develop compelling opportunities that support faculty excellence, student financial aid, experiential learning, research, and other priorities.

• Manage a portfolio of 100–120 high-capacity prospects and develop strategic, personalized engagement plans to cultivate relationships and secure major gifts of $250,000 or more, with a focus on $1M+ opportunities and annual fundraising of $1M–$3M+.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with alumni, parents, and friends by understanding their interests and philanthropic motivations and connecting them with compelling Law School and University priorities.
• Develop and execute comprehensive prospect strategies
  , including qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship, using research, data, and sound judgment to maximize philanthropic potential.
• Maintain a deep knowledge of Cornell Law School and University priorities and effectively communicate the impact and importance of philanthropic opportunities to donors and internal partners.
• Contribute to a collaborative, inclusive, and high-performing team culture while demonstrating integrity, resilience, accountability, and a strong commitment to higher education and Cornell’s mission; significant travel and occasional evening/weekend work are required.

At Cornell Alumni Affairs and Development, we connect alumni, parents, and friends with opportunities to make a meaningful difference at Cornell and beyond. Our success is built on the strength of relationships, a commitment to excellence, and a culture of collaboration, innovation, inclusion, and continuous learning. As one of higher education's leading fundraising and engagement organizations, we recently completed a record-setting campaign that engaged more than 221K alumni and raised $6.7 billion.

Joining our team means growing your career alongside supportive, mission-driven, and high-performing colleagues while helping shape Cornell's future.

• Bachelor’s degree and 5–7 years of relevant experience or equivalent combination.
• Proven ability to build strategic relationships and influence outcomes.
• Exceptional oral and…