Director, Annual Fund & Stewardship

Overview of School:

Sonoma Academy is an independent high school located in Santa Rosa CA on a 34-acre campus surrounded by 1000 acres of protected open space at the base of Taylor Mountain. Founded in 2001 it provides an engaging challenging and innovative college preparatory education and a supportive community for motivated learners from Sonoma Napa Marin Lake and Mendocino counties.

Our Mission: Sonoma Academy calls its students to be creative ethical and committed to learning. The school nurtures inspiring teachers and engages with the surrounding community and its students communicate across cultures as they prepare to become leaders in a dynamic world.

Sonoma Academys Commitment to Diversity: We believe that learning occurs best in a connected community. Diversity equity and inclusivity are essential to an education in which all members of our community thrive. We are committed to cultivating a diverse community that is conscious and welcoming of difference dedicated to investigating and advancing equity and engages with our local and global community. If you would like to join us in this work we would welcome your application. As we are deeply committed to having a staffulty (staff and faculty) and student body which reflects the rich diversity within the North Bay we strongly encourage candidates from BIPOC communities and/or professionals from communities that are historically underrepresented to apply.

For more information on programs and philosophy please visit our website: .

Key Responsibilities:

Lead Sonoma Academys Annual Fund and stewardship efforts as a highly relational and strategic advancement professional. This full-time exempt-level leadership role is responsible for independently designing directing and evaluating a comprehensive annual giving program that inspires broad participation and deepens donor engagement across the Sonoma Academy community.

The Director has primary responsibility and decision making authority for the strategic direction and operational leadership of the Annual Fund including campaign strategy leadership and volunteer engagement donor cultivation and solicitation and thoughtful stewardship practices that ensure every supporter feels known appreciated and connected to the impact of their philanthropy. While this role exercises discretion and independent judgment in establishing fundraising priorities messaging strategy and engagement approaches this work is accomplished through close collaboration with our communications team adhering to our brand values and key messages.

This role partners closely with the Director External Relations Head of School Advancement colleagues and the Board of Trustees to align fundraising priorities with institutional goals. The Director independently manages and strategically develops a portfolio of leadership annual fund donors and helps build a sustainable culture of philanthropy grounded in community belonging and shared purpose.

An ideal candidate brings strong fundraising acumen; excellent communication skills; a data-informed approach to strategy; and the ability to build authentic relationships with parents alumni grandparents and friends of the school. We seek a professional who is both strategic and hands-on someone who can confidently analyze participation metrics while also crafting meaningful donor Director is accountable for achieving annual financial and participation goals established in partnership with senior leadership.

In addition to these responsibilities administrative leaders at Sonoma Academy are active participants in campus life and may have opportunities to support school events community initiatives and signature advancement experiences throughout the year. Participation in these activities supports institutional advancement strategy and community engagement objectives.

Core Responsibilities:

• Develop and implement a comprehensive Annual Fund strategy to increase participation donor retention and overall philanthropic support.
• Establish annual revenue and participation targets in collaboration with senior leadership and develop strategic plans to achieve them.
• Establish measurable goals and evaluate campaign effectiveness using data and advancement best practices.
• Manage a multi-channel solicitation calendar including digital campaigns direct mail leadership outreach and volunteer-driven efforts.
• Cultivate solicit and steward a portfolio of leadership annual fund donors through personalized engagement.
• Partner with trustees and volunteer ambassadors to strengthen a culture of giving.
• Provide strategic direction and oversight to volunteer campaign leadership and ambassadors including goal setting training and performance accountability.
• Design and oversee a stewardship program that reflects Sonoma Academys values and communicates the impact of donor generosity.
• Ensure timely personalized gift acknowledgments and collaborate on impact reporting and donor communications.
• Work closely with colleagues across admissions marketing and student programs to surface compelling stories that inspire philanthropy.
• Utilize the schools CRM to track activity maintain strong data integrity and inform strategic decision-making.
• Prepare reports and dashboards for school leadership and the Board of Trustees.
• Monitor annual fund budget allocations and recommend adjustments to optimize fundraising outcomes.
• Evaluate campaign performance trends and recommend strategic pivots as needed to achieve institutional goals.

Core Requirements:

Successful candidates are passionate about education and believe in the transformative power of philanthropy to expand opportunity for students. They demonstrate professionalism strong cultural competency emotional intelligence and the ability to engage authentically with diverse constituents.

We seek candidates with experience managing fundraising initiatives meeting financial goals and building lasting donor relationships.

Candidates should possess excellent organizational written and verbal communication skills; strong project management abilities; and comfort working both collaboratively and independently in a fast-paced environment. A commitment to equity inclusion and community-centered fundraising is essential.

While this role requires exercise of discretion and independent judgment including donor strategy campaign planning and institutional advancement priorities this work is supported by cross collaboration with senior leadership.

Preferred Education and Experiences:

• Bachelors degree or equivalent professional experience required
• 5 years of progressive experience in fundraising advancement nonprofit development or related field preferred
• Experience in an independent school or educational environment is strongly valued
• Familiarity with fundraising databases/CRMs and donor stewardship best practices
• Experience working with volunteers boards or campaign leadership is a plus

Compensation:

Sonoma Academy offers a competitive salary and benefits package. The starting salary for this position is expected to range from $115000 to $155000 depending on experience. The school will evaluate the candidates relevant experience upon hiring.

Perks of working at SA:

• Comprehensive benefits package including health dental and vision insurance with multiple plan options
• Generous retirement plan contribution
• Commitment to professional development including generously funded training opportunities and a dedicated exploratory fund for learning
• Healthy and nutritious lunch service offered at no cost to employees during the school year (when on campus and our kitchen operational)
• A professional work environment defined by teamwork collegiality trust agility and altruism

Work Environment:

This position operates in a professional office environment at a private independent high school.

This is a full-time position with occasional evening and weekend work particularly during campaign cycles and community events.

Sonoma Academy is an equal opportunity employer. Sonoma Academy does not discriminate in employment opportunities or practices on the basis of race color religion sexual orientation national origin age or any other characteristic protected by law.