Chief Development Officer; CG

City Garden Montessori School (City Garden) is the only Montessori charter school in Missouri, and we are one of the highest-performing charter schools in the state. Our team possesses passion and determination to implement the Montessori approach to educating children in a diverse, public school environment. City Garden is committed to being an anti-biased, anti-racist community and seeks others who are passionate about these values.

We are committed to continuous learning and growth for adults in the community, to foster excellence for all City Garden children.

Located in St. Louis, City Garden just renewed its second 10 Year Charter with the state of Missouri. We began in 2008 with 53 students; now, we have 278 children in preschool through eighth grade. As we grow, we continue to seek individuals to join us who share our vision for academic excellence for all children and holistic Montessori education, rooted in equity and social justice.

As City Garden embarks on this ambitious growth plan , we’re seeking to hire a talented and strategic leader who will lead City Garden’s development department, significantly growing City Garden’s philanthropic support.

The Chief Development Officer will be responsible for achieving City Garden’s fundraising goals. She or he has direct responsibility for raising funds through major gifts, annual giving, corporate and foundation grants, planned giving and special events. The Chief Development Officer will also oversee marketing, branding, public relations, advertising and other communications initiatives. In this role, she or he will work closely with the entire leadership team, the Board of Directors and various Board committees, including the Development Committee, to build and implement a successful development strategy.

She or he will also work with client groups, media and other audiences as necessary.

The priorities for the CDO over the next two years will be:

• Building upon City Garden’s current development structures, systems and procedures, to ensure a healthy, robust, effective and efficient development program that will be sustained over time.
• Increasing City Garden’s Annual Fund campaign by 15%. (The Annual Fund currently brings in $830,000 in gross revenue.)
• Overseeing the launch of a comprehensive campaign, which will include approximately $5 Million in capital fundraising.
• Overseeing the development and implementation of an effective marketing and communications plan that reflects City Garden’s mission and values.
• Working in partnership with the CEO and the executive leadership team to thoughtfully and effectively lead City Garden through a period of significant growth and change.

The ideal CDO candidate will have a track record of success in fundraising, having led a development department for at least eight years, realizing significant growth in revenue and donors. They need to be strongly collaborative in order to work within City Garden’s culture of radical hospitality and communication. The right candidate will be able to put a stake in the ground on decisions and to push back on the board and staff when necessary.

Reporting directly to City Garden’s Chief Executive Officer, the CDO will serve on a leadership team along with the Chief Academic Officer and Chief Operating Officer, and will manage at least one other staff member, with potential to grow the Development Department over time.

What does success in this role look like?

Success in the first five years for the CDO will mean that City Garden will have increased annual fundraising revenue by at least 15%, and will have secured $11 Million to support its growth plan.

The CDO’s Key Responsibilities Include:

• Work with the Board, the Board Development Committee and staff leadership to meet fundraising targets on the yearly scorecard. Report fundraising results compared to budget to the CEO and to the Board throughout the year.
• Create a comprehensive annual plan that consists of a number of efforts, with a specific focus on major gifts (contributions of $1,000 or more), set quantifiable goals and objectives and see to their successful fulfillment. This includes identifying…