Director of Advancement

The Purpose

Our Mission: PT&E enables underserved youth to thrive and strengthens their community through academics, athletics, life skills, and family engagement. 

Our Vision: We envision a Portland where all youth have equal access to a fair learning and playing field.

The Opportunity

PT&E is a youth development nonprofit working to ensure every student involved in our K-12 program graduates high school on time with the opportunity and tools to pursue the post-secondary path of their choosing. Since our founding nearly 30 years ago, 100% of PT&E graduates have met this goal.

Each year, PT&E provides each student in our year-round programs ~1000 hours of positive, structured, out-of-school time focused on academic support, tennis and athletic enrichment, life skills and mental health support, and family resources. PT&E is also proud to call home our three-court tennis facility, formerly known as St. Johns Racquet Center, a longstanding community hub in North Portland open to the public for lessons, court rentals, and more. We aim to make tennis and pickleball welcoming and inclusive for individuals of all ages, backgrounds, abilities, and identities, and 100% of revenue from the tennis center goes back into serving the community. 

Position Overview

After a banner year of fundraising and a major rebrand to mark our 25th anniversary in 2022 followed by an even more successful 2023, we are eager to continue to secure major financial resources and build program awareness to fuel continued program growth and sustainability. PT&E seeks a proven fundraiser, brand-builder, and servant leader to serve as the next Director of Advancement (DA). Reporting to the Executive Director, the DA will develop, implement, and manage strategies to meet PT&E’s revenue targets and public awareness goals associated with our a) youth development nonprofit and b) public tennis and pickleball center. In addition, the DA will actively build an increasingly strong and diverse network of individual donors, corporate supporters, and local racquet club partners. Through management of the Advancement team and close partnership with the Board and Executive Director, the DA will also foster a culture of philanthropy and awareness-building. Key internal partners include PT&E’s dedicated Executive Director, a talented Advancement Manager, and an active, passionate Board of Directors.

We look forward to meeting candidates for this critical leadership role on a fun, dedicated, growth-oriented team! 

Your Role

40% - Fund Development

• Grow income portfolio - with particular emphasis on individual and corporate donors and club-based partners - through utilization of effective moves management practices for cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship
• Collaborate with cross-functional colleagues and Board to develop and maximize strategies to secure gifts from various constituents, working closely with Board and Executive Director to reach new and renewing donors 
• Creatively analyze data, conduct prospect research, and target donor segments for specific outreach, appeals, and funding opportunities, conducting direct solicitations and preparing PT&E leadership for solicitations
• Partner with staff and Board to ensure the success of grant portfolio and annual fundraising events with emphasis on strategy, budgets, messaging, and soliciting and managing pre-commits / matching gifts from event attendees
• Implement new and improve existing processes to optimize personalized donor engagement, ensure timely follow-ups, and enhance reporting capabilities

25% - Strategy

• Lead collaborative development and implementation of long-term, actionable advancement strategic plan (including fund development, marketing, and defined success metrics across both) in support of PT&E’s growth goals and strategic priorities
• Develop actionable strategies to reach optimally-balanced income portfolio in alignment with financial growth goals and PT&E’s strategic plan, including engaging new and upgrading current prospects and donors, increasing major gift commitments, and expanding pipeline of individual and corporate / club donors 
• Meet with individual Board Members to assess philanthropic priorities and historical giving, map donor prospects within networks, and partner with Board Officers and Executive Director to devise and implement strategies that engage Board Members as both donors and fundraisers 

15% - Marketing and Brand-Building

• Develop and oversee implementation of marketing strategies and aligned activities outlined in existing strategic plan and advancement plan to be developed by DA 
• Identify and create opportunities to increase the visibility of PT&E through strategic partnerships, events, PR and marketing opportunities, and other special initiatives
• Determine marketing and engagement KPIs and, in partnership with Advancement manager, conduct ongoing data lifecycle activities to measure growth from baseline 
• Partner with Racquet Sports Team on marketing and brand-building opportunities that position PT&E as go-to indoor racquet sports destination for numerous patron profiles 
• Ensure streamlined administration of donor, prospect, and patron data to enable ease of stakeholder segmentation and communication in pursuit of meeting marketing goals

15% - Management and Culture-Building

• Foster an increased culture of philanthropy and expanded capacity in fundraising and organizational awareness-building within Board of Directors and staff 
• Lead, mentor, and empower members of the Advancement team to meet organizational and personal growth goals. Team currently includes full-time Advancement Manager, part-time Volunteer Coordinator, Grant Writing vendor, and Marketing Intern.
• Partner closely with Advancement Manager to support execution of activities related to marketing, communications, events, and management of volunteer coordinator and grant writing vendor. Ensure alignment with existing strategic plan and advancement plan to be developed by DA 
• Participate in PT&E’s Performance Excellence goal-setting process as both manager and employee 

5% - Additional Projects & Opportunities

• PT&E encourages a culture of collaboration, with each team member committing to bringing PT&E’s staff-defined core values and guiding principles to life
• In this spirit, you may occasionally be asked to support other aspects of the Advancement team or organizational activities which may not be part of your day-to-day work

The Details

Critical Success Factors

• Must have a track record of success in direct fundraising, strategic planning, and marketing
• The Director of Advancement excels in relationship-building, has solid writing and verbal communication skills, has strong project management skills, and consistently demonstrates follow-through on their commitments
• Authentic, ethical storytelling practices are critically important for our youth, PT&E, and our wider community

The expansive list of potential qualifications below is intended to allow many individuals to see themselves in this role:

• Demonstrated commitment to Portland Tennis & Education’s mission
• Ability to communicate with funders and the public passionately and effectively about our work and issues
• Bachelor’s degree, equivalent education hours, or relevant experience
• A demonstrated ability to closely partner across multiple functions and stakeholder groups
• Experience working with individuals from diverse cultural, academic, athletic, and economic backgrounds
• Minimum of five years of nonprofit fundraising experience or equivalent
• Proven ability to secure six-figure commitments from individuals, corporations, or foundations
• Proven ability to increase brand awareness through marketing, PR, communications 
• Demonstrated ability to develop, foster, and sustain relationships with funders, including individuals and corporate partners
• Application of Equity & Inclusion lens: brings deep insight and a practical lens to places where identity, equity, and power intersect with the work
• Demonstration of people management experience and a servant leadership mentality. Includes direct staff, key stakeholders, committees, and / or volunteers
• Exhibits entrepreneurial spirit and encourages self and others to celebrate small wins
• Ability to effectively manage a large workload with competing priorities and deadlines and produce high-quality, polished work in a flexible, high-stress, fast-paced environment
• Exceptional organizational and planning skills with strong attention to detail
• Strong work ethic with the ability to work independently, take initiative, and manage up

Our Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

At Portland Tennis and Education, we believe that creating a culture of inclusivity - one that celebrates our diversity and builds on its strengths - enriches our community and fosters positive transformation. When we value and leverage the unique identities of PT&E families, staff, and our community, we allow for more innovative, collective change.

We strive to create a community that is safe for and truly inclusive of people of all sexual orientations, gender identities, disabilities, ethnicities, races, religions, nationalities, and cultural backgrounds, and we intentionally approach our hiring process with the same mindset.

We recognize the systemic and institutional inequities that impact those we serve and actively strive to address them while strengthening youth, inspiring families, and building communities that reach their potential.

We embrace a spirit of learning, continual growth, and reflective practice, and we expect that all new team members will bring that same spirit to their role.

• This position is a full-time, hourly, non-exempt opportunity at ~40 hours a week
• After 30 days of employment, we offer health and dental insurance via Kaiser and the opportunity to participate in OregonSaves IRA
• Schedule is generally on a Mon - Fri timeline, although specifics are dependent on which programs are in session and scheduling of occasional evening / weekend special events
• At this time, full-time employees work remotely on Fridays, a practice that we intend to carry forward in the near future as conditions allow
• PT&E offers exempt employees accrued sick time, vacation time, paid holidays, and a personal learning and development stipend to support growth goals
• The Director of Advancement reports directly to the Executive Director, who is committed to meaningfully mentoring and guiding the person in this position as they grow, learn, and work to reach near-term and long-term career goals through PT&E’s Performance Excellence program
• Must pass a pre-employment background check and reference check
• This position is based in the Portland Metro Area with work performed predominantly onsite at our St. Johns facility