Posted on July 19, 2012

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Vice President of Development

The Family Center, a nonprofit family services organization based in Somerville, Massachusetts, is seeking an exceptional development professional to serve as Vice President of Development. The Family Center’s mission is to create safer, more resilient families by supporting them in developing the inner strengths, life skills, and networks of resources they need to succeed.

The Organization The Family Center is committed to helping families discover and nurture their natural strengths. It began in 1982 in a van parked outside the Roosevelt Towers housing project in Cambridge. Since 1983, The Family Center has provided family therapy and support programs and launched training initiatives and consultation for social service agencies and schools throughout New England and New York.

The Family Center’s parent development programs raise awareness of the past and present factors that influence their parenting styles, enhance their parenting skills, and utilize their strengths to build nurturing family relationships.

• The Parenting Journey, our 12-week curriculum-based parenting group, is designed to help parents increase their self-care practices, raise awareness of the past and present factors that influence their parenting styles, enhance their parenting skills and utilize their strengths to support their children and build nurturing family relationships.
• Parenting in America, our 12-week curriculum-based program in which low-income, immigrant Haitian and Latino parents share their immigration experiences, honor their cultural strengths and use new strategies to confront the challenges of adapting to living in the United States and raising their children in two cultures.
• The Parenting Journey Training Institute provides front-line human service workers with effective tools and resources to assist parents in building resiliency in their families. These trainings currently occur in the Boston area and New York City. The New York City site is a model for plans for national expansion.

The annual budget of approximately $2.5 million is supported primarily by charitable gifts from individuals, corporations and foundations. The Family Center has a 10-member board of directors and employs 20 staff members.

The Position The Vice President of Development will have an outstanding opportunity to increase The Family Center’s capacity to serve more families by building an outstanding ‘small shop’ development office. S/he will report directly to Suzanne Heilman, Chief Executive Officer, and will serve as a member of the senior management team. In addition, s/he will work closely with the organization’s founder and current Board chair, Anne Peretz, and other members of the Board of Directors. S/he will supervise other development staff and fundraising volunteers as well as consultants and vendors to the Development Department.

Responsibilities

• Provide leadership and management in the direction, planning and execution of all marketing and fund development-related activities;
• Work with the CEO to create an effective Development Plan;
• Implement strategies to cultivate and expand new and existing donors;
• Identify and increase foundation, state, corporate and event support;
• Provide leadership and support for all external relationship-building with a variety of constituencies;
• Manage all external marketing and development communications planning and activities.

Qualifications and Characteristics Desired

The successful candidate will be a high-energy person of integrity committed to the mission of the organization. In addition, s/he will be an outstanding communicator who successfully articulates the mission, objectives and vision of The Family Center and persuades others to support the mission.

S/he will bring:

• A minimum of 8-10 years of progressively responsible fund development experience with a measurable record of accomplishment in key positions;
• Demonstrated record of working effectively with local and national foundation partners;
• Successful experience in corporation relations, annual giving, and events;
• Experience and success in the solicitation of major gifts;
• Effective management skills and supervision experience, with proven ability to work collaboratively as a colleague and team builder;
• Demonstrated interpersonal skills and quality relationships with a variety of constituencies;
• Ability to apply fundraising techniques imaginatively and entrepreneurially;
• Experience and comfort working with a diverse set of colleagues;
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent required; advanced degree desirable.

The Family Center is an AA/EOE employer.

Application Instructions

To apply, please send cover letter, resume and salary history to Susan Egmont, Egmont Associates, at segmont@egmontassociates.com.