To apply for this position: Mount Holyoke College Employment

Director of Foundation Relations and Sponsored Research

The director of foundation relations and sponsored research takes the lead for planning, implementing, and directing a comprehensive program of foundation, corporate, and governmental support. The director provides the expertise to advance Mount Holyoke’s interests by researching and identifying sources of support, proactively seeking opportunities to generate new proposals based on corporate and foundation guidelines and interests, and maintains strong communications and strategic relationships with donors and program officers. The director handles many challenging and diverse projects simultaneously, including writing and editing proposals, preparing grant reports and grant- related correspondence, and conducting stewardship activities. The director maintains respectful relationships and partnerships with the president, dean of faculty, center directors, faculty members, and colleagues and departments throughout the College. The director of foundation relations and sponsored research function has a dual reporting function to the dean of faculty and the vice president for advancement.

Roles and Responsibilities

• Lead the College’s fundraising priorities in the foundation, corporation, and sponsored research area.
• Maintain in-depth knowledge of College priorities.
• Identify and research funding sources and opportunities, follow funding leads, and work with appropriate faculty and departments to submit highly competitive institutional grant proposals.
• Work with the dean of faculty’s office, the sponsored research officer, and the faculty as a whole to support faculty proposals both to government and private funding sources, for research and curriculum development grants. This includes, but is not limited to, assuring that faculty are informed of grant opportunities and potential collaborations, and assisting them with proposals, budget preparation, and grant submission.
• Supervise the associate director of foundation relations, sponsored research officer, and foundation relations and sponsored research coordinator.
• Monitor consistent and appropriate stewardship for institutional grants, including reports, letters, and visits as warranted.
• Oversee preparation of internal monthly and quarterly reports of activity across all grant- seeking phases.
• Work with sponsored research officer to organize faculty workshops on pre- and post-award issues.
• Monitor the College’s internal faculty grants process, which is staffed by the associate director.
• Create and assess quantitative goals and objectives for grant activities, with the overall objective of increasing proposal volume, success rates, and dollars raised.
• Collaborate with Five College corporate and foundation relationship colleagues as well as peer liberal arts college colleagues (SCAFRO).

Qualifications

• Exemplary listening, speaking, writing, and editing skills.
• Strong project management and strategic planning skills.
• Ability to create and manage budgets.
• Proven understanding of effective identification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship techniques and strategies.
• Ability to work collaboratively with a wide variety of constituents and inspire team work among office colleagues.
• Willingness to work extended hours when necessary in order to meet deadlines.
• Ability to condense complicated information and communicate it in general, lay terms.

Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree required, Master’s highly preferred.
• Minimum of 5 years professional experience in Higher Education Foundation and Sponsored Research required with emphasis on writing proposals and managing complex budgets; other related experience in grantsmanship, fundraising, communications, nonprofits or project management may be considered.
• Experience with supervising and directing staff preferred.

Experience working in a Liberal Arts College environment preferred

Mount Holyoke College is an Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to diversity in education and employment.

Human Resources

1 Skinner Hall
Mount Holyoke College
50 College Street
South Hadley, MA 01075

Phone: 413-538-2503
[email protected]