Position: Rwanda Development Associate

Department: Development

Status: Full-Time

Reports to: Chief Development Officer

The Akilah Foundation, a US 501(c)(3) nonprofit, is committed to expanding access to high-quality education worldwide by supporting innovative programs and learning environments. The Akilah Foundation supports Davis College | Akilah, the only college for women in Rwanda, and Davis College, a global co-ed network of universities. Davis College offers degrees to male and female students, with an ambitious vision for scale, while Davis College | Akilah serves as a unique environment for female students.

Davis College Hong Kong and Davis College Rwanda will open in 2020. By 2030, Davis will open 10 campuses in Africa and Asia and educate 1 million students.

The Davis academic pillars (21st-century skills, personalized learning, innovation, ethical leadership, and sustainability) will serve as its guiding light during this phase of rapid expansion. They define all of the institute's programs. Davis is committed to delivering a transformative learning experience that equips students with the knowledge and skills needed to thrive in careers in the fastest growing sectors of the economy.

Decennial Campaign:

Akilah is preparing to launch an ambitious and exciting multi-year campaign in celebration of our 10-year Anniversary. The Decennial Campaign aspires to a significant financial goal of $26 million by 2024, in support of students, faculty, and global innovation. We seek to strengthen and expand creative partnerships with industry, government, academic leaders, and —most important— the generous and passionate donor community that has brought this vision to life.

This ambitious campaign will fuel our global expansion and exponentially increase our impact on young people around the world. We are engaging the support of our entire community: alumni, parents, foundations, corporate partners, faculty, staff, students, and friends. The Decennial will include galas, summits, luncheons, and digital campaigns in support of our global expansion.

The Position:

The Development Associate will be responsible for day-to-day coordination and fundraising support for Davis College Rwanda . She/He will work closely and collaboratively with the Akilah Foundation Development Team to execute Akilah’s annual fundraising strategy and plan. The Development Associate will work with the Chief Development Officer and other members of the development team to achieve the annual revenue goals inclusive of campus visits, the Scholars Circle, and all Rwanda events.

The position reports to the Chief Development Officer and is a key member of a six-person Development Team.

Key Responsibilities:

The Development Associate is an integral part of the development team and will support ongoing development activities related to the Decennial Campaign.

Implement Events Strategy

• Coordinate with event planners, vendors, and team as needed, ensuring timely payment and successful completion of deliverables.
• Work closely with Chief Development Officer and Development team to support Decennial Campaign events in Kigali and beyond.
• Help manage Event Host Committee in Kigali to ensure their volunteer skill sets are utilized and leveraged appropriately.
• Work closely with the communications and marketing team on all Kigali-related communications in regards to events in Rwanda.
• Represent the organization at committee meetings.

Campus Visits

• In coordination with the Chief Development Officer, develop, implement, and continually assess and retool the Campus Visitor Experience Playbook.
• Act as the primary point-person on campus receiving donors and guests.
• Lead, develop and follow-through all stages of the visit, including conducting pre-visit research, if applicable.
• Work in collaboration with other departments for the design and planning of each visit.
• Ensure the Davis College President and all relevant on-campus parties are fully briefed before each visit, schedule time for the pre-brief, as well as individual roles in the visit, if applicable.
• Accurate, timely and relevant entry of guest and donor visit information into Salesforce. Ensure proper follow up and action items are effectively captured into Salesforce.
• Maintain responsibility for all administrative and logistics duties related to donor and guests visits, including but not limited to coordinating transportation, lodging and meals and managing schedules.

Donor Engagement & Marketing

• In coordination with Chief Development Officer, maintain short- and long-term moves management strategies to cultivate campus visitors, post-visit.
• Maintain on-campus responsibility for capturing, supporting, and communicating donor stewardship initiatives, in conjunction with Marketing. Examples include:
• Manage and create content, photos and other materials to support stewardship of the Scholar’s Circle (in coordination with Development Associate and other relevant staff).
• Seek out and source content to communicate Davis College’s impact through interviews with current students, alumnae, faculty, staff, and other community members.
• Active participation in other development-related marketing efforts as assigned.

External Outreach

• In collaboration with Davis College’s President and Director of Partnerships, research and propose opportunities for collaboration with local organizations and institutions to support Akilah’s mission and institutional objectives.

Other Duties

• Assist in the planning and implementation of development-related campus and external events, as assigned by Chief Development Officer.
• Maintain active participation in all team, supervision, and other assigned meetings.
• Utilize Davis College tools/resources (Asana, Slack, etc.) to manage projects and communicate with team members.
• Track and communicate progress reports to manager on a periodic basis, as assigned.
• Other duties as assigned.

Required Education & Experience:

• Two-year diploma; graduates of Davis College | Akilah will be given preference; and
• 1-3 years professional work experience in an administrative or support capacity preferred.

Desired Skills and Qualifications (our ideal candidate with have most, if not all, of the following skills and qualifications):

• Willingness to work in an “all hands-on deck” environment and engage in a variety of tasks.
• You are relentlessly resourceful and refuse to be slowed down by anything in your way. You push to get access to the resources you need, can contribute to an unsustainable effort when the situation calls for it, and be creative in finding ways to remove blocks.
• You are proficient in both Microsoft and Google application suites.
• You have an exceptional ability to organize and manage details, while not losing sight of the larger goals. You can see the forest AND the trees.
• You are exceptionally motivated by the idea of building a global community of lifelong learners. This is not a 9-to-5 position and we are not a 9-to-5 organization. You are ready and willing to do whatever it takes to ensure success.
• You are an enthusiastic proponent and impeccable user of all systems available to you to continually drive improvements in operational efficiency.
• You love taking ideas and running with them. You can draw the owl and complete projects without an exact roadmap for how to get them done.
• You are skilled at cross-functional collaboration and execution.
• You possess a high level of emotional intelligence and the ability to earn the trust of your peers, the board, donors, committee chairs and other key partners.
• You are skilled at moving quickly, prioritizing critical tasks with grace and tenacious follow up in a fast-paced startup environment.
• You approach your work with a commitment to building a positive organizational culture that values continuous learning, excellence, transparency, honest feedback, perseverance, and sense of humor.

Work Environment/Physical Requirements:

No specific physical requirements.

Job Responsibilities Statement:

The above statements reflect the general duties, responsibilities and competencies considered necessary to perform the essential duties and responsibilities of the job and should not be considered as a detailed description of all the work requirements of the position. Specific job duties may be changed with or without prior notice based on the needs of the organization.

Apply at: https://www.akilahinstitute.org/careers/?bzid=bea267cc8b2b