JOB TITLE
Senior Director, Stewardship & Donor Relations
LOCATION
Worcester
DEPARTMENT NAME
Development & Communications Strategy
DIVISION NAME
Worcester Polytechnic Institute - WPI
JOB DESCRIPTION SUMMARY
The Senior Director, Stewardship and Donor Relations leads WPI's comprehensive donor stewardship strategy, ensuring every philanthropic investor experiences exceptional recognition, impact reporting, and ongoing engagement that deepens their connection to the university and inspires continued support. This senior leader designs and executes stewardship programs that demonstrate gratitude, communicate impact, and build lasting relationships with donors across all giving levels—from first-time annual fund supporters to principal gift investors. Reporting to the Assistant Vice President, Development Communications and Strategy, the Senior Director ensures stewardship is strategic, personalized, and seamlessly integrated with broader advancement communications and fundraising efforts. This role is critical to completing the Beyond These Towers campaign with strong donor retention and positioning WPI for sustained philanthropic success.
JOB DESCRIPTION
Stewardship Strategy & Leadership (35%)
1. Develop and implement comprehensive donor stewardship strategy aligned with fundraising goals, campaign priorities, and donor lifecycle engagement
2. Design differentiated stewardship approaches by donor segment (major/principal gifts, leadership annual giving, planned gifts, corporate/foundation, first-time donors)
3. Create personalized stewardship plans for top donors in partnership with gift officers, ensuring consistent touchpoints and meaningful impact reporting
4. Establish stewardship standards, timelines, and accountability measures across advancement division
5. Lead stewardship planning for campaign completion and transition to post-campaign donor retention strategies
6. Partner with gift officers to ensure stewardship supports donor cultivation, retention, and upgrade pathways
Donor Recognition & Gratitude (25%)
7. Oversee all donor recognition programs including gift acknowledgments, donor societies, naming opportunities, and public recognition
8. Manage donor society programs (e.g., legacy society, campaign donor recognition) including membership criteria, benefits, events, and communications
9. Ensure timely, personalized, and accurate gift acknowledgments that reflect donor intent and demonstrate genuine gratitude
10. Coordinate presidential and leadership engagement in donor stewardship including thank-you calls, personal notes, and recognition events
11. Design and execute donor recognition events that celebrate philanthropy and showcase impact
12. Manage donor recognition spaces, plaques, digital displays, and physical recognition on campus
13. Partner with Communications on donor honor rolls, annual reports, and public recognition platforms
Impact Reporting & Communications (25%)
14. Create compelling impact reports that demonstrate how donor investments advance WPI's mission, support students, enable research, and transform lives
15. Develop endowment fund reports providing financial updates and programmatic impact for endowed gift holders
16. Produce customized impact communications for major and principal gift donors showing specific outcomes of their investments
17. Partner with academic and administrative units to gather impact stories, data, and outcomes for donor reporting
18. Oversee stewardship communications including newsletters, videos, impact stories, and digital content
19. Ensure stewardship messaging is authentic, donor-centered, and demonstrates tangible results
20. Track and report restricted gift spending and impact to ensure donor intent fulfillment
Cross-Functional Collaboration (10%)
21. Serve as primary stewardship resource and partner to all gift officers, providing tools, templates, and support
22. Collaborate with AVP, Development Communications and Strategy on integrated communications strategy
23. Partner with Advancement Operations on gift processing, database tracking of stewardship activities, and reporting
24. Work with Events team on donor recognition events and stewardship experiences
25. Coordinate with Finance on endowment reporting, fund spending, and restricted gift compliance
26. Engage faculty, students, and program leaders in stewardship through scholarship recipient letters, facility tours, and research presentations
27. Participate in divisional planning and cross-functional initiatives
Requirements:
28. Bachelor's degree; Master's degree preferred
29. 7-10 years of advancement experience with increasing responsibility in stewardship, donor relations, or development communications
30. Demonstrated success designing and implementing comprehensive donor stewardship programs
31. Exceptional writing and storytelling skills; ability to translate institutional priorities into compelling donor impact narratives
32. Strong project management abilities with capacity to manage multiple concurrent initiatives and meet deadlines
33. Experience with donor database systems for tracking stewardship activities
34. Strategic thinker who connects stewardship to donor retention, cultivation, and fundraising outcomes
35. Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to collaborate across advancement and campus partners
36. Detail-oriented with commitment to accuracy in donor communications and recognition
37. Understanding of donor psychology, recognition preferences, and stewardship best practices
38. Experience in higher education advancement strongly preferred
39. Flexibility to work occasional evenings and weekends for donor events
Preferred:
40. CFRE (Certified Fund Raising Executive)
41. Experience in comprehensive campaign environment with stewardship of campaign donors
42. Knowledge of endowment reporting and restricted gift administration
43. Familiarity with CASE standards for donor recognition and stewardship
44. Experience with digital stewardship tools and platforms
45. Understanding of STEM education and research university context
Salary Grade 10: $95,000 – $118,800 per year (depending on experience)
Salary is based on related experience, expertise, and internal equity; generally, new hires can expect pay between the minimum and midpoint of the range.
FLSA STATUS
United States of America (Exempt)
WPI is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified candidates will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran status, or disability. It seeks individuals from all backgrounds and experiences who will contribute to a culture of creativity, collaboration, inclusion, problem solving, innovation, high performance, and change making. It is committed to maintaining a campus environment free of harassment and discrimination.