For the past nearly 100 years, the ACLU has been at the forefront of every major civil liberties fight in our country’s history. Whether it’s ending mass incarceration, achieving full equality for the LGBT community, establishing new privacy protections for our digital age, or preserving the right to vote, we take up the toughest civil liberties cases and issues to defend all individuals from government abuse and overreach. With ACLU affiliate offices in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, we fight tirelessly in the courts, legislatures, and through community engagement to ensure that all individuals’ rights are protected. We are a passionate, highly motivated, group of lawyers, public policy and legislative advocacy experts, community organizers, and fundraisers, and we’re looking for exceptional talent to join our team.

This is an incredibly exciting time to join the ACLU. In celebration of our 100th anniversary in 2020, we are launching our largest ever comprehensive fundraising campaign – with a goal of over $1 billion – which will allow us to take our organization to the next level by strengthening our cutting-edge legal program, amplifying our public engagement, and building the political power necessary to continue to fight new threats to freedom head-on, and win.

The ACLU of Tennessee is based in Nashville, a rapidly growing city with a booming tech sector, a rich history in social justice, a dynamic food scene, and numerous other cultural and entertainment attractions. Nashville has recently been ranked as having the “nation’s best music scene” (Rolling Stone), being “America’s Friendliest City” (Travel + Leisure), and the third best positioned city in the U.S. to “grow and prosper in the coming decade” (Forbes). In addition to being based in an exciting city, the ACLU of Tennessee is an exciting, fast-paced place to work. With a current annual budget of $800,000 and six full-time team members, we are planning for significant expansion in the breadth and depth of our work to protect and advance the civil rights of all Tennesseans. We are seeking a dynamic, enthusiastic, and experienced Director of Development to lead our resource development efforts and facilitate the expansion of our organization and our presence in the community and state.

The Opportunity

Reporting to the Executive Director, the Director of Development will spearhead development efforts at the ACLU of Tennessee as the organization continues to grow. Working closely with colleagues at the national ACLU, the Director of Development is responsible for planning, supervising, and executing the ACLU of Tennessee’s program to raise funds to support the organization’s current and future strategic goals. The Director of Development will lead fundraising efforts by partnering with the Executive Director to strategically mange her portfolio of major donors and prospects (with estimated gift capacities of $10,000+), as well as his or her own portfolio, to strengthen donor relationships and solicit philanthropic investments that will generate longstanding, tangible civil liberties victories. The Director of Development will spend a significant amount of time directly interacting with donors and helping them fulfill their philanthropic interests and passions.

Responsibilities

The Director of Development will develop an annual fundraising plan as part of an overall strategic plan promoting programmatic and organizational growth, which will specify fundraising goals for major gifts, annual support, grants, and planned giving. Prioritizing individual gifts from major donors, the Director of Development will manage all aspects of the ACLU of Tennessee’s fund development program, including:

Major Gifts Portfolio: Expand the number of leadership gift ($5,000+) ACLU supporters in Tennessee. Manage relationships for a portfolio of 75-100 donors and prospects with the capacity to make annual contributions of $5,000+, including those assigned to the Executive Director. Develop goals, strategies, and cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship plans for each donor, ensuring that they receive frequent personalized “touches”. Engage in face-to-face solicitations with donors and prospects. Draft donor correspondences, gift proposals, and maintain primary responsibility for developing the messages, materials, and explanations of our work used in all of our development efforts. Partner with colleagues from the national ACLU to advance key donor relationships. Conduct prospect research and actively lead identification of major gift prospects to bring new supporters into the organization.
Planned Giving: Expand the number of supporters in the ACLU’s legacy society. Market planned giving opportunities to ACLU supporters. Partner with colleagues from the national ACLU to identify prime legacy donor prospects and solicit planned gifts.
Annual Support: Periodically steward mid-level supporters (those at the $1,000 – $4,999 level without capacity to increase to the leadership level).
Grants: Lead the foundation grants program. Research and identify prospective funders, work with program staff on grant preparation, proposal submission, and reporting. Cultivate relationships with foundations as strategically appropriate.
Events: Oversee the planning of strategic cultivation, and stewardship events, as applicable.
Gift Processing: Ensure thatall donors to the ACLU are acknowledged for their contributions in a timely and thoughtful manner. Record all gifts in donor database.
Database: Maintain confidential fundraising information in donor database. Ensure the accuracy and hygiene of donor records. Create and run reports that reflect donor activity, fundraising program performance, and revenue projections to be shared with Executive Director, finance staff, and Board of Directors.
Other duties: Attend certain ACLU functions, such as the annual membership meeting, volunteer events, and other tasks as assigned.

Ideal Experience and Qualifications

The Director of Development should have the following experience and qualifications:

At least four years related experience, with progressive responsibility and a proven track record of meeting with prospective donors, and soliciting, closing, and stewarding major gifts of at least $10,000. Experience soliciting planned gifts is preferred. Local knowledge of Tennessee philanthropic community a plus.
A strong interest in civil liberties and the mission and principles of the ACLU.
Exceptional initiative, vision, and ambition to lead a vibrant philanthropy program.
Demonstrated leadership skills and experience in successfully directing others, at all levels of the organization, in carrying out development-related activities
Strong interpersonal skills and comfort making donor contacts, including ability to communicate effectively and respectfully on the phone and in person.
Excellent communication skills; the ability to speak comfortably and compellingly with donors about sometimes complex and multifaceted civil liberties issues and the impact potential of their philanthropic investments.
Strong organizational and administrative skills and the ability to prioritize and manage multiple projects and to meet deadlines.
Strong work ethic and willingness to tackle tasks ranging from data entry to direct solicitation.
Experience with donor database management and systems to ensure accurate and confidential donor and campaign records.
A confident and professional work style. Ability to work independently and to exercise good judgment in stressful circumstances. Flexibility and a willingness to take on new tasks as the responsibilities of the position evolve.
Proficiency with office technology (including Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint).
Personal initiative, collaborative, and a sense of humor.
Ability to work occasional evening, weekends, and irregular hours.

How to apply

Send a cover letter and resume by email to applications@aclu-tn.org. Please put “Director of Development” in the subject line.

You will receive an email confirming that your application was received. We will contact you as soon as possible regarding the status of your application. Please do not contact the ACLU-TN office regarding the status of your application as unfortunately we cannot return these calls and emails.

Applications accepted until the position is filled. Please indicate in your cover letter where you found this job announcement.

The ACLU of Tennessee comprises two separate corporate entities, the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee (ACLU-TN) and the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Tennessee (ACLUF-TN). Both the ACLU-TN and the ACLUF-TN have the same overall mission, and share office space and employees. The ACLU has two separate corporate entities in order to do a broad range of work to protect civil liberties. To learn more about the work of the ACLU and the civil liberties principles we uphold, please see www.aclu.org or www.aclu-tn.org.

The ACLU is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer and encourages women, people of color, persons with disabilities, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals to apply.