Description

The Community Development and Fundraising Manager / Director will lead a variety of duties necessary to support WRFI’s community development and fundraising efforts. This position will closely work with our ED, Marketing Manager, WRFI’s Community Development and Fundraising Committee (CDFC), board members, and field education team. This role is permanent.

WRFI has a community of appx. 1500 alumni, 2000 parents, 200 current/former instructors/staff, 200 current/former board members, and a variety of other community supporters. Over the past three years, we have successfully engaged this community in rallying around WRFI’s mission, strategic plan, and work. This role will lead the efforts to further community building and expand relationships with this constituency. The majority of philanthropic revenue WRFI generates comes from this community. Currently, WRFI raises ~$300,000 annually; this role is expected to reach or exceed that benchmark in 2026 and subsequently work to increase this amount to appx. $500,000/year by 2028.  Our community development and fundraising has grown exponentially over the past three years, a trend we expect to continue based on the past several years of fundraising data.  

Requirements

The successful candidate will have proven fund raising experience, excellent communication and computer skills; the ability to work well with donors, foundation officers, supporters, students, field instructors, and office staff; as well as parents,, and corporate decision makers.  Experience in garnering gifts in the five- and six-figure range is strongly preferred. We anticipate candidates at the Manager level to bring 1+ years in community development and fundraising, and candidates at the Director level to bring at least 3+ years of experience in fundraising. The successful candidate will be passionate about supporting environmental programming and higher education. The ideal candidate will be familiar with Google platforms, NeonCRM, Windfall Data, spreadsheets and formulas, grant applications, and individual giving. A keen attention to detail, a capacity to work independently, and the desire to participate in a variety of tasks is essential, as is a capacity to self motivate on both immediate and longterm, capacity building projects related to the role.