Senior Manager, Donor Stewardship

Position: Senior Manager Donor Stewardship
Department: Development
Reports to: Chief Development Officer
Location: New York City (Hybrid)
Salary: $90000 annually Growth Opportunity: Pathway to Director of Stewardship

About Student Sponsor Partners

Student Sponsor Partners (SSP) is the nations original and largest scholarship organization connecting New York City students with access to quality private education one-to-one mentorship and long-term support. Since 1986 SSP has transformed the lives of thousands of young people by providing opportunities that lead to high school graduation college success and lifelong achievement. Today SSP supports more than 1200 students and works with a community of generous individual corporate foundation and family foundation partners who make this life-changing work possible.

Position Summary

Student Sponsor Partners seeks an experienced relationship-oriented Senior Manager of Donor Stewardship to lead a best-in-class donor experience that inspires long-term engagement retention and increased philanthropy. Reporting to the Chief Development Officer this individual will design and execute a comprehensive stewardship strategy that demonstrates the impact of every philanthropic investment. They will ensure donors receive thoughtful timely and personalized communications while partnering across the organization to create meaningful touchpoints that deepen relationships with SSP. This is an exciting opportunity to build and scale a stewardship program at a growing organization with ambitious fundraising goals.

Key Responsibilities

Donor Stewardship Strategy

• Develop and implement a comprehensive stewardship program for individual corporate foundation and endowment donors.
• Design differentiated stewardship experiences aligned with giving levels donor interests and strategic priorities.
• Continuously evaluate and enhance the donor experience to strengthen retention loyalty and lifetime giving.

Donor Communications & Reporting

• Lead the creation and production of compelling stewardship materials including:
  • Student progress reports
  • Impact reports
  • Endowment reports
  • Annual stewardship communications
  • Customized donor updates
• Translate program outcomes into clear engaging stories that demonstrate measurable return on philanthropic investment.
• Ensure communications are timely accurate personalized and aligned with SSPs brand and messaging.

Stewardship Planning & Execution

• Build and manage an annual stewardship calendar integrating communications recognition opportunities events reporting deadlines and key program milestones.
• Oversee donor acknowledgment processes and ensure all stewardship activities are completed with exceptional quality and timeliness.
• Identify opportunities for personalized outreach and meaningful engagement throughout the donor lifecycle.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner closely with Development Programs Marketing & Communications and Events to coordinate stewardship activities and donor engagement.
• Collaborate with program staff to gather student stories outcomes and impact data.
• Support donor events by developing meaningful stewardship experiences before during and after each event.

Data & Continuous Improvement

• Track stewardship activities and donor engagement metrics within the CRM.
• Analyze donor participation retention and engagement trends to inform future strategy.
• Develop scalable stewardship processes and documentation as SSP continues to grow.

Qualifications

• Bachelors degree required.
• 5-7 years of experience in nonprofit development donor relations stewardship advancement services or related field.
• Exceptional writing and editing skills with the ability to craft compelling donor communications.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines.
• Outstanding organizational skills and attention to detail.
• Experience working with donor databases/CRM systems.
• Collaborative mindset with the ability to build strong relationships across departments.
• Passion for education opportunity and SSPs mission.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience developing stewardship programs for major gift and endowment donors.
• Experience producing donor impact reports or annual stewardship communications.
• Familiarity with scholarship education or youth-serving organizations.
• Experience supporting corporate and foundation stewardship.

What Success Looks Like

Within the first year the Senior Manager Donor Stewardship will:

• Launch a comprehensive tiered stewardship program for SSPs donor community.
• Establish an integrated annual stewardship calendar.
• Create consistent high-quality impact reporting across all major donor segments.
• Enhance donor communications that clearly demonstrate the outcomes and impact of philanthropic investments.
• Strengthen donor retention and engagement through personalized meaningful stewardship experiences.

Why Join SSP

At Student Sponsor Partners youll help build life-changing relationships between generous philanthropists and remarkable young people. Youll join a collaborative mission-driven team during an exciting period of organizational growth while shaping the donor experience that fuels SSPs future.

Career Growth: This position offers a clear pathway to Director of Stewardship as the development team continues to expand.

Required Experience:

Senior Manager