The Wiki Education Foundation, located in the Presidio in San Francisco, is seeking a hands-on development professional to help create a sustainable funding base for this young nonprofit. This position will have a key role in the small, successful team which runs this unique organization.
BACKGROUND
The Wiki Education Foundation supports innovative uses of Wikipedia and related projects in communities of teaching, learning, and inquiry in the United States and Canada. The Foundation aims to improve the breadth, scope and quality of Wikimedia content; enhance student information fluency; and increase the number and diversity of contributors to the free knowledge movement by engaging educators, researchers and students.
The Wiki Education Foundation (Wiki Ed) serves as the bridge between Academia and Wikipedia. Formed in 2013 as the education program spin-off of the Wikimedia Foundation (the nonprofit organization that operates Wikipedia), Wiki Ed runs programs that seek to build connections between universities and Wikipedia. Since 2010, more than 300 university instructors participating in the program have assigned students to contribute course-related content to Wikipedia. Students gain key 21st century skills including media literacy, writing and research development, and critical thinking, while content gaps on Wikipedia in areas such as medicine, psychology, sociology and others are filled as a result of students’ contributions.
Wikipedia is the free online encyclopedia that anyone can edit, with over 33 million volunteer authored articles in over 287 languages, and more than 430 million visits each month. As a resource used by most universities, many instructors use Wikipedia as a teaching tool in their classrooms. Through outreach, both online and print tools, and ongoing support, Wiki Ed seeks to expand the number of universities and teachers that incorporate this method of teaching as part of their overall curriculum.
To support activities, new pilot programs and scalability going forward, Wiki Ed must build a sustainable base of funding. To this end, they need to develop relationships with individuals and foundations that have an interest in advancing knowledge, knowledge sharing, pedagogy, and learning.
The Wiki Education Foundation is thriving and has had excellent results and proven impact in its program areas. The organization has grown and matured and now has a staff of 13 and governance board of 9.
Basic Function
Not your typical Development Associate job that is ruled by endless data entry, the Wiki Education Foundation seeks a creative development professional that wants to change the world and have fun while doing so. The ideal candidate is both meticulous and free-thinking, deadline driven but never loses sight of long term goals. The Development Associate is part of dedicated two-person team working to meet aggressive goals by connecting funders to the Wiki Education Foundation’s innovative programs.
Immediate Priorities
The Development Associate will work closely with the Senior Manager of Development to conduct strategic individual and institutional donor prospect research.
Research wide-ranging information channels to remain informed about Foundation donor or prospect activity and trends in philanthropy.
Work with the Senior Manager of Development to create, grow, and maintain prospect tracking systems(s).
Preparing thorough donor and prospect profiles.
Assist in the planning of two to four small, highly-curated fundraising events annually.
Assist in the creation, tracking, and reporting of detailed major gift cultivation systems.
Ongoing Responsibilities
Assist with gift processing, record keeping, grant tracking and grant reporting.
Provide general administrative support for senior fundraising staff.
Ideal Experience
2–5 years of relevant experience
A mission-driven individual with an understanding of, belief in and commitment to the benefits of freely available information
Proven track record of creating and growing donor research, cultivation tracking, and reporting systems
Able to build strong and positive relationships with donors, Wiki Education Foundation’s board, and senior management
An exceptional communicator, in writing as well as verbally; adept at writing donor correspondence, research profiles, and other development materials.
Highly organized with the ability to organize others; attentive to detail
Dedication and commitment to excellence and quality
Experience in SalesForce or other database environments
The successful candidate will have the ability to perform the duties listed above; demonstrate effective oral and written communication skills; maintain effective working relations with the Foundation donors, board, leadership, and staff; and represent the Foundation to others in a professional and courteous manner.
Personal Characteristics
The successful candidate should be:
A mission-driven individual with an understanding of, belief in and commitment to the benefits of the free exchange of information; a passion for communicating how these principles are important in our world; an ability to communicate that passion without losing focus;
Curious and self-directed with a high energy level; a “get it done” attitude, always staying focused on the end goal;
An independent and open-minded individual who values and appreciates diversity, input and collaboration from various constituencies;
A solid, easy communicator, both in writing and speaking, and particularly able to recognize the alignment of funders’ interests with the value of Wiki Ed programs; the ability to be the public face of fundraising, when appropriate.
A good listener; comfortable receiving high-context, detailed input from many sources;
Emotionally mature and self-reliant; someone who will thrive working in a small, collaborative, collegial environment; a sense of humor.
How to apply
Candidates must submit a cover letter describing how they meet the required qualifications of this role. Applications that do not include a cover letter will not be considered. Enter the job title and your last name in the subject line. Please email your C.V. and cover letter to: jobs@wikiedu.org.