Development Associate, Major Donor Relations

The Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law is a nonpartisan law and policy institute that seeks to improve the systems of democracy and justice in the United States. We work to hold our political institutions and laws accountable to the twin American ideals of democracy and equal justice for all. The Brennan Center’s work ranges from voting rights to campaign finance reform, from ending mass incarceration to preserving constitutional protections in national security policies.

Part think tank, part advocacy group, part cutting‑edge communications hub, we start with rigorous research, craft innovative policies, and fight for them in Congress, in the courts, and in the court of public opinion.

The Development team is responsible for raising the revenue needed for the Brennan Center to operate and remain sustainable into the future. It is comprised of three portfolios:
Major Donor Relations, Institutional Relations, and Direct Response & Donor Services. The Brennan Center entirely relies on donations; it receives no funding from NYU or the government.

We seek a Development Associate to join the Major Donor Relations team, a vital part of our 20‑person Development department. This industrious, organized, and collaborative individual will support the major individual giving program, which raises $35‑40M+ annually from individuals and families contributing five‑, six‑, seven‑, and eight‑figure gifts to the Brennan Center each year.

The Associate will play a central, supportive role in the daily operations of the six‑person Major Donor Relations team, maintaining operational and administrative excellence across activities. Duties include donor and prospect research; ensuring accurate and complete donor and gift records; editing donor correspondence and other written products; assisting with event logistics and execution; and working with other Development team members to manage an array of supportive, coordinating duties that contribute to the success of the major giving portfolio and entire department.

Success in this role will require exceptional attention to detail as well as project management, interpersonal, and organizational skills. Candidates must also have excellent written and oral communication competencies, with the ability to enthusiastically manage up, down, and across to accomplish ambitious goals in a quickly changing environment. We seek an individual who is not only talented at minding administrative tasks but eager to oversee them for a highly ambitious team.

The Associate will report to the Director, Major Donor Relations, supporting the full breadth of the Major Donor Relations team, including officers, team directors, and organizational leadership.

This position is in‑office 4 days per week (Monday through Thursday) and is based at our headquarters in New York City. The role may occasionally require in‑person work on Fridays and supporting early morning, evening, or weekend events.

• Manage organization of Major Donor Relations team’s weekly flow of donor correspondence, proofreading final products with assiduous attention to detail.
• Support team of frontline fundraisers in the full scope of donor cultivation and stewardship practices, including but not limited to producing and editing written materials and preparing for virtual and in‑person meetings.
• Prepare mailing lists, event invitation lists, donor research profiles, and other regular needs across the Major Donor Relations portfolio.
• Support daily, weekly, and ad hoc major gift processing tasks, including cleanup, coding, issuing acknowledgements, and maintaining accurate donor records.
• Conduct donor and prospect research, strategically issue‑spotting and effectively communicating results to front‑line fundraisers and program leaders.
• Help implement a systematic individual donor research program for the department, in close collaboration with the Development Associate focused on mid‑level giving.
• Support the preparation for and production of both live and virtual donor events and briefings.
• Use Salesforce to manage logistics for large outreach campaigns, create and…