Development Manager

Location: Dallas–Fort Worth, with some hybrid/remote work flexibility.

Employment Type: Full-time, Exempt

Start Date:
April 2026

About The Organization

The Educator Collective is a nonprofit organization dedicated to strengthening educator and school-leader efficacy and resilience through connection, collaboration, and continuous growth.

Our organization offers high-impact professional learning, well-being-centered interactive workshops and curated peer networks designed to create a culture of connection and well-being for educators across North Texas and beyond. We believe deeply that when educators are supported, empowered, and connected, schools and communities thrive.

The Educator Collective is seeking a Development Manager to play a key role in growing and sustaining our fundraising efforts. This role will support the execution of our development strategy by managing donor relationships, advancing fundraising initiatives, and owning the systems and operations that drive philanthropic revenue.

Position Overview

The Development Manager will work closely with the CEO to build meaningful relationships with donors and partners, communicate our impact, and ensure strong execution of all development activities. This is a highly collaborative, hands-on role that requires strong attention to detail and ownership of day-to-day execution across all development activities, combining relationship management with operational leadership.

This is an ideal role for a relationship-oriented fundraiser who is excited to grow into greater ownership of the development function over time. As the organization grows, this role offers the opportunity to take on increased responsibility for fundraising strategy and donor relationships, with the potential to evolve into a more senior leadership position and help shape the future of the organization’s development efforts.

Key Responsibilities

Donor Relationship Management

• Manage and grow a portfolio of individual donors and prospects
• Support donor cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship efforts
• Lead and support donor meetings, including preparation and follow-up
• Track and manage donor engagement in CRM with clear next steps
• Support the execution of the annual development plan
• Partner with the CEO to advance major donor relationships
• Help identify and qualify new donor prospects
• Contribute to strategies that increase donor retention and giving levels
• Support preparation for board fundraising committee meetings and engage the board in advancing broader fundraising strategy, including materials, updates, and follow-up actions.

Grants & Foundation Management

• Serve as the internal lead for grant processes, timelines, and coordination
• Manage relationships and communication with foundation partners (as appropriate)
• Coordinate with and support the external grant writer to ensure alignment on timelines, priorities, and organizational messaging
• Gather and provide program data, inputs, and context to inform strong proposals and reports
• Review and refine grant submissions to ensure alignment with organizational priorities and consistency in messaging
• Track grant deadlines, reporting requirements, and renewal opportunities to support timely, high-quality submissions

Campaigns & Donor Communications

• Partner with Marketing & Communications to develop donor-facing materials
• Draft donor updates, impact communications, and stewardship materials
• Ensure timely and personalized donor acknowledgments and follow-up

Development Operations & Pipeline Management

• Own day-to-day management of the donor CRM (data integrity, updates, reporting)
• Track all donor activity, proposals, and next steps across the pipeline
• Prepare regular reports on fundraising performance and pipeline health

Development Administration & Execution

• Prepare donor briefing materials for leadership
• Coordinate scheduling and logistics for donor meetings and engagements
• Support execution of fundraising events (from a donor engagement perspective)
• Ensure all development activities are well-organized and executed with attention to detail

Qualifications

• 4–7 years of experience in nonprofit development or fundraising
• Experience managing donor relationships and/or a…