Executive Director of Development, Penn Libraries

University Overview

The University of Pennsylvania, the largest private employer in Philadelphia, is a world-renowned leader in education, research, and innovation. This historic, Ivy League school consistently ranks among the top 10 universities in the annual U.S. News & World Report survey. Penn has 12 highly-regarded schools that provide opportunities for undergraduate, graduate and continuing education, all influenced by Penn's distinctive interdisciplinary approach to scholarship and learning.

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The University offers a competitive benefits package that includes excellent healthcare and tuition benefits for employees and their families, generous retirement benefits, a wide variety of professional development opportunities, supportive work and family benefits, a wealth of health and wellness programs and resources, and much more.

Posted Job Title

Executive Director of Development, Penn Libraries

Job Profile Title

Senior Director, School/Center Development

Job Description Summary

Unit Overview:

The Penn Libraries provides a network of information resources and knowledge services that are vital to teaching, research, and learning at the University of Pennsylvania. This network includes 19 physical libraries, recognized for their collections, and a digital library known for innovation and richness of content. Through dynamic programming and exhibitions, and through the acquisition and preservation of literary and artistic artifacts, the Penn Libraries documents a wealth of social and historical periods, bringing scholarship to life at the University and in the various communities it serves.

The Penn Libraries development program has distinguished itself as a destination for donors who want to support and engage with the breadth of the University's academic enterprise. With its placement at the heart of the University, Penn Libraries is uniquely positioned to impact the entire institution and provide a comprehensive donor experience. Recent fundraising successes include a campaign to renovate the 5th floor of Van Pelt Dietrich Library Center to create a state of the art home for the Center for Global Collections, as well as a naming gift for the recently-renovated Holman Biotech Commons.

Position Summary:

Reporting jointly to the H. Carton Rogers III Vice Provost and Director of Libraries, and the Associate Vice President for University Development, Development and Alumni Relations (DAR), the Libraries Executive Director of Development is responsible for the overall conceptualization, planning and execution of a coordinated program of fundraising and donor communications for the Penn Libraries. As the lead fundraiser for the program, the Executive Director of Development is also responsible for growing and maintaining a robust overall pool and individual pipeline of prospects, donors and volunteer leaders on the Libraries' behalf.

The Executive Director of Development serves as an integral member of the Vice Provost's senior leadership team and plays a key leadership role. They will work closely with the Vice Provost, senior leadership team, the Board of Advisors, other volunteer groups to promote their active involvement in the fundraising process, and orchestrating the use of their time and talent to advance the Libraries' quest for gift and grant support, as well as further Penn alumni engagement and public awareness.

In addition, the Executive Director of Development partners intimately with the Director of Strategic Communications, who is responsible for developing and fostering a comprehensive, technology-rich strategic marketing and communications plan to promote the services, collections and programs of the Penn Libraries to an external audience, including but not limited to current members of the Penn community (faculty, staff, students, administrators);
Penn Alumni;
Penn parents; private, public and governmental agencies; other research libraries and more.

As part of the University of Pennsylvania's hybrid centralized/decentralized DAR structure, the Executive Director of Development also serves as a valued member of Central DAR's University Development Program and will be included in leadership planning within the program. Within this structure, the Executive Director of Development has responsibility for cultivating and sustaining deeply collaborative relationships with Central DAR programs and colleagues in order to fully activate the additional capacity of the…