The Organization
The Edmonds College Foundation is a nonprofit organization that raises funds to expand access and to support educational efforts for students attending Edmonds College. The Foundation connects south Snohomish County to its college and is driven by the belief that lives and the community can be transformed through the power of education.

Established in 1967, Edmonds College is a public, degree-granting state college. It focuses on academic excellence, student success, and engagement, which reflect the three aspects of its mission: Teaching | Learning | Community. The College serves about 15,000 students annually, more than 45% of whom come from diverse backgrounds, and welcomes more than 1,000 international students from more than 60 countries.

Each year, the Foundation raises almost $1 million to ensure students have access to the support they need to succeed. The funds are used to provide scholarships, emergency funding, and investments in impactful practices like learning labs, support for incarcerated, low income, and first-generation college students, and helping to host a STEM conference for young girls thinking about expanding their horizons.

Additionally, in fiscal year 2019-2020, the Foundation raised $2.1 million for the LAUNCH campaign supporting the construction of Hazel Miller Hall – a recently opened, $54M building expanding the College’s STEM and Nursing programs.

The Position
The Edmonds College Foundation (ECF) seeks a dynamic, innovative Executive Director (ED) who is passionate about supporting the college’s mission of teaching, learning, and community. The ED will lead a multi-disciplinary team of five (5) toward philanthropic excellence through all aspects of the organization: development, fiscal stewardship and accountability, board partnerships, communication, College relations, marketing and outreach, and efficient operational processes. The person in this role will provide strategic leadership and direction for corporate, foundation and individual giving activities, including fundraising and cultivation events, planned giving, special events, annual and capital campaigns, and a focus on major gifts programs with high net worth individuals.
Operationally, the ED reports to the Vice President for Innovation & Strategic Partnerships of Edmonds College and together they develop, implement, and manage innovative fundraising strategies, collaborate with the College on impactful programs, and provide management and direct oversight to Foundation staff. The Executive Director works collaboratively with the Foundation Board of Directors to establish and execute strategic priorities that align with the College’s goals, ensure compliance with the legal and fiduciary responsibilities of the organization, and continually recruit, refresh, and engage board members. This position is jointly accountable to the Edmonds College Foundation Board of Directors Executive Committee and the Edmonds College Vice President for Innovation & Strategic Partnerships in meeting established goals, targets, and high-level outcomes.

In addition, the ED is often the face of the Foundation and is responsible for communicating with multiple audiences and through multiple channels about the impact the Foundation makes in the community.

Leadership Abilities
Candidates will be evaluated on the full range of their lived and learned experience, professional background, volunteer experience, and direct and transferable skills. Edmonds College Foundation is seeking candidates with a compelling combination of demonstrated experience and skills in some, or all, of the following areas:

• Experience serving as a CEO, Executive Director, or senior staff member of an organization, division, or department of comparable size.
• Exposure to fundraising, social sector or nonprofit services, foundation operations, or education – which may come from board, volunteer, or staff service – is required for success in this role.
• High emotional and social intelligence. Able to build and cultivate internal and external relationships to increase organizational capacity, capabilities, reach, and positive impact.

Commitment to:

• Diversity, equity, inclusion, racial and social justice.
• Improving access to advanced education and expanding economic opportunity for a diverse student body.
• Continuous improvement toward operational excellence.
• Creating equitable and inclusive practices and outcomes in the workplace and for all served through the Foundation.
• Identifying and implementing innovative approaches to engage the community.

Ability to:

• Navigate competing priorities, multiple stakeholder interests, and varied contexts to accomplish goals.
• Deliver informative, persuasive, and engaging presentations to a wide variety of audiences.
• Lead a fully integrated fundraising program (e.g., annual giving, special events, in-kind, major donor, individual giving, planned giving).
• Shape and articulate value propositions to align donors’ motivations to college needs.
• Lead, motivate, inspire, and develop high-functioning teams.
• Recruit, inform, engage, and support talented and committed volunteers to serve as Board Directors.
• Balance all aspects of running a small, nonprofit organization (e.g., finances, fundraising, board relations, staff leadership, college relations, marketing, branding, PR, operations, strategy development and implementation).

Important Personal Attributes for Success Include:

• Business acumen
• Financial savvy
• Creative energy
• Innovative thinking
• Nimbleness
• Flexible & adaptable personality
• Strategic thinking
• Enthusiasm
• Passion for the Foundation’s mission

Total Compensation
The annual salary range for this position is $105,000 – $115,000 plus a competitive benefits package. More information on The Edmonds College Foundation employee benefits can be found here.

To Be Considered
The position is open until filled, with a priority deadline for submission of candidate materials of November 5, 2021. Interested candidates are encouraged to apply immediately.

Candidate materials are reviewed on an on-going basis and initial interviews will begin by mid-October. Please submit a resume and a two-page (or less) cover letter addressed to Danielle Carnes, Vice President for Innovation & Strategic Partnerships.

Please upload the resume and cover letter as a single, combined WORD or PDF document.

You may direct questions to Ed Rogan at [email protected] or 206.697.8428 or Mikkell Jackson Roeland at [email protected] or 425.919.2855.

Edmonds College is committed to diversity, equity and inclusion. The College values its talented, diverse workforce and seeks to attract, hire, and support employees who consistently and actively embrace diversity and equity. Edmonds College is an equal opportunity employer. Edmonds College invites all individuals to apply and as an equal opportunity employer, we also encourage individuals from diverse backgrounds and groups to apply for this position.

The College and the Foundation are harassment-free workplaces.