Grants and Sponsorships Manager

We invite you to join our fun, book-loving, social justice-driven team of 13 to fulfill the mission of SAL as our Grants & Sponsorships Manager. With the support of the Director of Development, the Grants & Sponsorships Manager will cultivate and sustain strategic partnerships with foundations, corporations, and other institutional donors on behalf of Seattle Arts & Lectures.  This position sits within a four-member Development Team. It requires an individual who is passionate about using their grant writing, corporate partnership, and other fundraising skill to advance SAL’s mission to create transformative literary experiences for readers and writers of all generations.

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Title: Grants and Sponsorships Manager
Reports to: SAL Development Director
Full Time, nonexempt

Organization Overview:
Mission: Seattle Arts & Lectures cultivates transformative experiences through story and language with readers and writers of all generations.

We invite you to join our fun, book-loving, social justice-driven team of 13 to fulfill the mission of SAL as our Grants & Sponsorships Manager. SAL fulfills its mission through educational, public, and community programming, in-person and online. Our public literary events bring the most talented and thought-provoking writers of our times to speak about and read their work. Our free Summer Book Bingo program (co-presented with the Seattle Public Library) inspires our community to reconnect with the joy of reading through a series of fun challenges. Our youth programs include Writers in the Schools (WITS) and the Seattle Youth Poetry Fellowship (YPF) program. WITS places local, professional writers in public school classroom residencies to inspire K-12 students to tell their stories as they develop lifelong writing skills. YPF elevates the powerful voices of local youth poets committed to community engagement, education, and equity in our region.

SAL offers thoughtfully curated experiences through programs that are intergenerational in nature, bolstering both emerging and established literary artists, and inviting change and new perspectives in our audience. We believe these activities are essential to continuously and courageously revitalize equity, justice, and belonging. Our work both internally and externally is guided by our core values: belonging, racial equity, transparency and trust, curiosity, and joy. We value a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture in all areas of our work and culture. SAL is an equal opportunity employer. Individuals from all cultures and communities are warmly encouraged to apply.

We recognize that opportunities in the arts have historically excluded and continue to disproportionately exclude Black and Indigenous people, people of color, people from working class backgrounds, people with disabilities, and LGBTQ+ people. We strongly encourage individuals with these identities to apply.

Strong candidates will bring a diverse set of skills, characteristics, and experiences, both professional and lived. SAL focuses on a holistic view of potential candidates and understanding that no single candidate will offer every desired skill and characteristic. The following offers an aspirational view of the ideal candidate profile, and we encourage applications from candidates with a wide range of experiences and backgrounds.

Inclusion, Diversity, and Access
All staff actively participate in SAL’s ongoing efforts to become an anti-racist organization and embody an organizational culture that supports and reinforces our inclusion, diversity, equity & access goals. Our 2020-24 Strategic Plan and SAL’s Equity Accountability Reports are available on the SAL website under “About.” This commitment and understanding should be demonstrated throughout the performance of the Grant and Sponsorship Manager’s job responsibilities and staff activities.

Position Overview
With the support of the Director of Development, the Grants & Sponsorships Manager will cultivate and sustain strategic partnerships with foundations, corporations, and other institutional donors on behalf of Seattle Arts & Lectures.  This position sits within a four-member Development Team. It requires an individual who is passionate about using their grant writing, corporate partnership, and other fundraising skill to advance SAL’s mission to create transformative literary experiences for readers and writers of all generations. We seek candidates with demonstrated experience working with philanthropic partners; a track record of successful grant writing; and who excel at strategically developing compelling proposals and cultivating and stewarding funder and partner relationships. They will play a critical role in raising funds to support an annual budget of $3.8 million. The Grants & Sponsorships Manager will be expected to actively prospect, write, and submit proposals to foundation and corporate donors and sponsors, and work closely with the Development Director, the Executive Director and the rest of the development team to track goals and share outcomes and deliverables on a timely basis.

Primary Responsibilities:

  • Grant Writing, Submission, and Management (25%): Craft compelling letters of intent/inquiry (LOIs), full proposals, and reports to foundations and corporations that articulate the breadth and depth of SAL’s work. This includes developing and updating succinct yet effective one-pagers and concept notes on Writers in the Schools, our Public Programs, and for General Operating Support for interested and prospective philanthropic partners as needed.Manage the grant life cycle for a donor growing portfolio of $750,000 from pre-award to post-award, including government funding and foundations, ensuring timely submission of written narratives and budget proposals and reports. This entails working collaboratively with SAL’s Development Director, Executive Director, Finance Director, and gathering information from Youth Programs and Public Program Staff.
  • Prospecting (15%): Conduct detailed research on grants, foundations, and sponsorships scanning for open calls for proposals, and cultivate strategies for pursuing new institutional donors. This also includes leveraging staff and board connections and networks to cultivate and new relationships with foundations and corporations.
  • Sponsor Stewardship, Acquisition, Invoicing, and Benefits Fulfillment (25%):Lead communications with event sponsors regarding their sponsorships to ensure that SAL delivers expected benefits. Working with the Development Team to ensure events run smoothly, reporting is complete, and all sponsorships are invoiced.
  • External Meeting Preparation (10%): Provide the Executive Director and Development Director with detailed information for donor meetings that cover research on foundation or corporate representative(s), and strategies and insights for effective donor engagement.
  • Tracking Revenue Goals (5%): Track philanthropic donations internally to measure progress towards institutional giving revenue goal, as determined by each year’s annual fundraising budget.

Other Responsibilities (20%):

  • Maintain foundation records and sponsor accounts in PatronManager, and communicate with our finance team to accurately track institutional donations;
  • Send acknowledgment letters and tax receipts to institutional funders and corporate sponsors upon receiving a gift;
  • Actively participate in Development/Communications meetings, all staff meetings, and SAL programs and fundraising events;
  • Ensure that our institutional donors are celebrated and recognized in our Annual Report and Brochure, Sponsor poster, listed appropriately on our website, and included, as needed, on other printed materials.

 

Desired Qualifications:

  • A minimum of four years of fundraising/development experience, preferably in the non-profit arts or education sector;
  • Successful track record of cultivating and maintaining institutional giving relationships;
  • Solid understanding of the nonprofit sector and ability to think strategically about how SAL can both successfully maintain and increase its revenue support.
  • Demonstrated communication skills, including prowess in working cross-functionally between development, finance, and program staff;
  • Adept at using Google Suite programs and Dropbox.
  • Experience in using donor management software (Patron Manager) is a plus;
  • Knowledge of the Puget Sound philanthropic landscape.
  • General understanding of nonprofit finance and budgeting to be able to forecast philanthropic support and work with the Development and Finance Directors on budgeting and financial reporting to donors.

 

Additional Considerations

In-person evening/weekend hours required at events and fundraising gatherings (typically 4-5 times per month, September to June).

Note: Seattle Arts & Lectures is a fully vaccinated office, and all medically eligible new staff members will be asked to provide proof of COVID vaccination.

COMPENSATION & BENEFITS:

This is a 40 hours/week full-time nonexempt position. Salary range is $58,000 – 62,000 per year (commensurate with experience and qualifications) with a robust benefits package, including:

  • Generous paid time off, including 20 vacation days/year starting your second year (15 days in year one), as well as wellness time, 3 personal days, and holidays
  • 100% of medical, vision, and dental insurance, long-term disability, and group life insurance covered, including an Employee Assistance Program
  • 403(b) retirement plan pre-tax distribution with a 3% gross salary match funded by SAL
  • Flex time as appropriate
  • Hybrid/remote schedule as appropriate with a laptop provided
  • Support and budget for professional development and growth


HIRING PROCESS & TIMELINE: For best consideration, please apply before June 24th.We will begin phone interviews July 8 and 9, with in-person interviews to follow.Finalists will be invited to a second round of interviews with SAL’s full team and the hiring team and will be paid a stipend of $250.

TO APPLY:

  • Send a resume and cover letter that tells us why this position is right for you and why you want to work at SAL. Resumes submitted without a cover letter will not be considered.
  • Submit applications electronically in one PDF document to salhr@lectures.org. The email subject line should be “SAL Grants and Sponsorship Manager.”
  • Open until filled. For best consideration, please submit no later than 9 p.m. on June 24, 2024.

Contact Information for inquiries related to this position (email preferred):
Camille Hermida-Fuentes
Hiring Coordinator
salhr@lectures.org

206.621.2230 x26