Assistant Director Advancement Communications and Donor Relations

Assistant Director Advancement Communications and Donor Relations

Job Category: Advancement

Requisition Number: ASSIS

• Posted : October 14, 2025
• Full-Time
• Hybrid

Locations

Showing 1 location

Chicago, IL 60603, USA

Description

For more than 150 years, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) has been a leader in educating the world’s most influential artists, designers and scholars. Located in downtown Chicago with a fine arts graduate program consistently ranking among the top four graduate fine arts programs in the nation by U.S. News and World Report, SAIC provides an interdisciplinary approach to art and design as well as world-class resources, including the Art Institute of Chicago Museum, on-campus galleries and state-of-the-art facilities. SAIC’s undergraduate, graduate and post-baccalaureate students have the freedom to take risks and create the bold ideas that transform Chicago and the world—as seen through notable alumni and faculty such as Michelle Grabner, David Sedaris, Elizabeth Murray, Richard Hunt, Georgia O’Keeffe, Cynthia Rowley, Nick Cave, and LeRoy Neiman.

Please click on the links below to view our competitive, comprehensive benefits package:

• Job Classification: Full Time Salaried Staff

BASIC FUNCTION:

The Assistant Director, Donor Relations and Advancement Communications is an essential role in the School of the Art Institute of Chicago’s (SAIC) Office of Advancement that enhances the overall stewardship, donor experience, and engagement of SAIC alumni and donors. Under guidance from the Director and in partnership with Office of Advancement and campus colleagues, the Assistant Director supports and implements donor relations and events efforts for the School.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Manages suite of annual stewardship deliverables which includes leading the development an annual reporting calendar, collection of recipient materials, drafting of reports, and editing of submitted materials with guidance from the Director
• In consultation with portfolio managers and Director, provides recommendations on appropriate medium for reporting such as personalized impact reports, videos, and in-person moments
• Manages relationships with partners across the institution to collate information on recipients, awarding of philanthropic funds, and fund balances
• Track donor relations and stewardship activities in SAIC’s customer relationship management system, the Raiser’s Edge
• Ensures donors are acknowledged in a timely manner and leads revisions of acknowledgement and auto-receipting templates for the department
• Supports the creation of events communications pieces and advises on post-event stewardship opportunities
• Collaborates with other teams within the Office of Advancement to develop and execute tailored stewardship strategies for specific constituent groups
• Assists Donor Relations team with gathering and segmenting data for fund reporting, donor events, and stewardship mailing purposes
• Advises and partners on content creation used across Advancement teams in external donor communications and for strategic initiatives
• Provides direction to a student worker on donor relations projects
• Performs other related work as needed to support the goals and priorities of the department

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree required. Study in the field of English, Communications, Journalism or related field highly desired.
• Minimum 2-3 years of progressive experience in donor relations, communications, alumni engagement, journalism, or related field required. Experience working as part of a fundraising or marketing team within a university, small non-profit, or in a volunteer capacity highly desired.
• Minimum 2-3 years' experience of professional writing and editing required.
• Must be willing to provide a writing sample in the interview process.
• Demonstrated proficiency in Microsoft Office, The Raiser’s Edge, and Adobe InDesign highly desired.
• Demonstrated experience managing projects and working across teams to accomplish a shared objective.
• Demonstrate proficiency with spreadsheets, mail merges, and using databases.
• Demonstrate strong attention to detail.
• Possess strong organizational skills, self-motivation and initiative.
• Experience managing confidential information with discretion and tact highly desired.
• Must act with integrity, professionalism, and confidentiality.
• Must work collegially and collaboratively in a team setting.

UNION: This position is part of a bargaining unit represented by AFSCME Council 31.

ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION

The Art Institute of Chicago is an equal opportunity, equal access employer fully committed to achieving a diverse and inclusive workplace. We believe in a staff culture that benefits from a wide range of experience, backgrounds, and career paths, and we encourage nontraditional candidates to apply.

The Art Institute of Chicago is an Equal Opportunity Employer that recruits, hires and promotes qualified individuals without regard to race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, ancestry, veteran status or citizenship. The Institute complies with federal and state disability laws and makes reasonable accommodations for applicants and employees with disabilities. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, please contact the Department of Human Resources at

Equal Opportunity Employer
This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws. For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.