Development Director

Room to Read's mission is to provide under-privileged children with an opportunity to gain the lifelong gift of education. The organization was founded on the belief that education is the key to breaking the cycle of poverty and taking control of one's own life. We currently work in Cambodia, India, Laos, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Vietnam, countries with a desperate lack of resources to educate their children. In 2006, we began our expansion into Africa and selected South Africa as the first country in which to work.

Room to Read is a results-driven organization that seeks to intervene early in a child's life to provide ongoing educational opportunities in their communities. We are non-governmental, non-religious and work with many local NGOs and community based organizations to implement our programs. We have developed a successful approach to building educational infrastructure and opportunities which consists of:

• Partnering with communities to build schools through challenge grants      
• Establishing bi-lingual libraries     
• Publishing local language children's books     
• Establishing computer and language labs     
• Providing long-term scholarships to girls

In our first six years, Room to Read's worldwide team celebrated the opening of our 3300th library, the donation of our two millionth book, and our fourth consecutive year winning the Fast Company / Monitor Group Social Capitalist award. To date, we have impacted the lives of over 1,000,000 children.

Room to Read has an annual budget of approximately US$12 million, and our global staff will number over 175 by the end of 2007. Our global headquarters is located in San Francisco, and we have program offices in Colombo, Ho Chi Minh City, Pretoria, Kathmandu, New Delhi, Phnom Penh, and Vientiane. Our long-term goal is to help 10 million children to gain the lifelong gift of education.

Position Overview:

Room to Read has experienced tremendous growth since its founding in 2000. We are now seeking a Development Director, East Coast to support our fundraising efforts from individuals, family foundations, schools, foundations, and corporations along the eastern seaboard and Chicago. This position will be based in New York City.

The Development Director will be an integral part of our dynamic US-based development team and will report directly to the Chief Development Officer.

Duties & Responsibilities:

• Serve as the first point of contact and main liaison for Room to Read on the East Coast (including New York, Washington, DC, Boston and Chicago).     
• Source and maintain relationships with donors on the East Coast, primarily individuals and family foundations with a goal of $2MM+ annually.     
• Represent Room to Read in meetings with foundations and corporations on the East Coast and coordinate proposals and reports with the Manager of Foundations and Corporations in the Global Office.     
• Raise East Coast profile of Room to Read through local and regional PR and partnerships.     
• Liaise with the Global Office on donor communications, strategy, and reporting.     
• Liaise with students, teachers, and parents to coordinate and grow the Students Helping Students Campaign.      
• Assist with individual, foundation and corporation development research.      
• Coordinate and support events to spread the word about Room to Read.      
• Serve as the organizational liaison on logistical issues for individuals doing small fundraising campaigns for Room to Read on the East Coast.     
• Maintain Raiser's Edge Database with accurate donor records and information.     
• Assist with volunteer coordination in the New York area.      
• Manage 1-2 support employees as needed.

Qualifications:

Required

• Bachelors degree     
• Minimum three years non-profit development experience or sales experience     
• 5-6 years general work experience in a fast-paced, growth-oriented organization     
• History of dedicated volunteer activity and/or commitment to non-profit organizations      
• Adept at using Excel and Word      
• Excellent interpersonal skills      
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English     
• Effectiveness in working or volunteering in a non-profit organization that is focused on maintaining high quality work and low overhead      
• Detail oriented and extremely organized      
• Results oriented     
• Flexibility and ability to multi-task     
• Ability to juggle multiple priorities simultaneously and take initiative

Preferred

• Experience working with databases, specifically Raiser's Edge     
• Experience living or working internationally     
• Prior success working closely and building relationships with diverse groups of people     
• Ability and desire to travel internationally

To be successful as a member of the Room to Read team, you will also:

• Have a passion for our mission and a strong desire to impact an up-and-coming non-profit organization      
• Be an innovative and creative thinker - you are not afraid to try something new and inspire others to do so     
• Have a very high level of personal and professional integrity and trustworthiness     
• Have a strong work ethic and require minimal direction      
• Work well independently as well as part of a team     
• Thrive in a fast-paced and fun environment

Compensation:

Room to Read offers a competitive salary with excellent benefits. Benefits include health, dental, vision, long-term disability insurance, and a 401K match. The non-monetary compensation includes a unique opportunity to be part of an innovative, meaningful, fun, and rapidly growing organization that is changing the world through the lifelong gift of education.

Application Procedure:

Please send a cover letter and resume by email, with "Dev Director, East Coast" in the subject line.  No letters, calls, faxes, or drop-ins.

Applications accepted until position filled.

Room to Read is an equal opportunity employer committed to identifying and developing the skills and leadership of people from diverse backgrounds.