On behalf of Rutgers Foundation, thank you for considering this important opportunity. This Executive Brief contains an overview of the organization, details on the position and a few points we would like you to consider before pursuing this opportunity.
This document is intended to provide you with information - it is not a contractual document. Some of the material may be subject to change. We will do our best to keep you informed of any new developments over the course of the search.
At any time during the search process, should you have any questions or require further clarification, we would be happy to assist.
Best Regards,
Daniel C. Grassi and Wendy Wilsker
Rutgers Foundation
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a leading national research university and the state of New Jersey’s preeminent, comprehensive public institution of higher education. Established in 1766, the university is the eighth-oldest higher education institution in the United States. More than 67,000 students and 22,000 faculty and staff learn, work, and serve the public at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, Rutgers University-Newark, Rutgers University-Camden, and Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences.
Created in 1973, the Rutgers University Foundation advances Rutgers' pursuit of excellence in education, research, and public service. The foundation serves as a bridge between donors and the schools and programs, faculty, and students that make up the university. Foundation staff members help to match caring people with satisfying and meaningful opportunities to make gifts that have an impact on Rutgers, the state of New Jersey, and the world.
Rutgers Health
Rutgers Health is where Rutgers University’s biomedical education, research, and health care come together.
Rutgers Health is New Jersey’s academic health center, taking an integrated approach to educating students, providing specialized and compassionate clinical care for its communities, and conducting innovative research. This collaboration uniquely enables us to revitalize our ideas about patient care and create life-changing health for all. Its eight schools, behavioral health network, and four centers and institutes unite to bring discoveries from the lab directly to patients across the state and around the world.
Rutgers Health - Leadership Spotlight:
Dr. Perry Halkitis - Dean, Rutgers School of Public Health
Perry Halkitis, PhD, MS, MPH
Dean, Rutgers School of Public Health
Dr. Perry Halkitis is Dean and Professor of Biostatistics and Urban-Global Public Health at the School of Public Health at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. He is also Professor in the Robert Wood Johnson School of Medicine, Rutgers Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology, and Rutgers School of Public Affairs and Administration as well as a member of the Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey. Dr. Halkitis is also Professor Emeritus at the College of Global Public Health at New York University. Dr. Halkitis holds degrees in psychology, education, and public health.
For over two decades, Dr. Halkitis’ program of research has examined the intersection between HIV and other STIs, drug abuse, and mental health burden, and the biological, behavioral, psychosocial, and structural factors that predispose these and other health disparities in the LGBTQ population. Recently the focus of his work has centered on three main areas: (1) documenting the exposure to bacterial and viral pathogens associated with health disparities and cancer disparities in gay men; (2) understanding the behavioral, biological, psychosocial, and structural factors that predispose infection with these pathogens and other health burdens; and (3) implementation research that integrates biomedical and behavioral approaches to deliver healthcare services to gay men within the community to prevent these disparities. This work is being enacted in the United States in large urban centers including Newark, New Jersey and is being developed in Athens, Greece. Dr. Halkitis is the founder and director of the Center for Health, Identity, Behavior & Prevention Studies (CHIBPS; www.chibps.org), which is a training site for the next generation of scholars and partners with community agencies to conduct studies for and with the LGBTQ population.
William Green - Vice President for Development, Rutgers Health
William Green
Vice President for Development, Rutgers Health
William Green oversees all aspects of development for Rutgers Health’s eight schools and seven centers and institutes. Mr. Green works directly with the Rutgers Health chancellor and the Rutgers University Foundation president to advance the programs and initiatives of the unit, including grateful patient fundraising, third-party giving, major and principal giving, and leadership annual giving.
The Opportunity - Director of Development, School of Public Health
The Rutgers University Foundation seeks a collaborative, mission-driven, and resourceful development professional to serve as its Director of Development (DOD) for the School of Public Health (SPH). The DOD will proactively seek out connections with individuals, corporations, and foundations to raise philanthropic support on behalf of the School of Public Health and Rutgers Health more broadly. In addition, the DOD will provide oversight of fundraising for the School of Health Professions (SHP) by directly supervising the Assistant Director of Development (ADOD) SHP. This is an exceptional opportunity to join an institution that is at the vanguard of generating new ideas to improve society and that operates with a true sense of purpose, and a chance to join the overarching Rutgers University Foundation (RUF) as strategic growth plans are underway.
The DOD will cultivate prospects and donors rated at the leadership and major gift level, actively soliciting prospects and donors but also developing a meaningful stewardship strategy to ensure continued engagement and giving. The DOD will play a critically important role in fully building out the fundraising portfolio for the Schools, focusing on relationship-driven donor cultivation while also seeking new opportunities for philanthropic support and identifying new prospects through community interaction (internal and external).
The ideal candidate brings a minimum of five years of fundraising experience with a track record of success in identifying donors and establishing partnerships with individuals, corporations, and foundations. The incoming DOD thinks strategically and creatively in their efforts to build pipelines and relationships with cultural fluency, empathy, and high emotional intelligence. The candidate is a natural business builder with an approach that believes there are no dead ends but only new avenues to pursue; offers an authentic and collaborative approach that builds trust; and the professional maturity, respect, and intellectual curiosity to partner with multiple deans, faculty, and colleagues. They must be a self-starter and be able to handle complex organizational details while multitasking.
Roles and Responsibilities
Essential Functions:
In partnership with Vice President for Development, Rutgers Health, and the Deans of SHP and SPH, contribute to the design and execution of a strategic development plan that results in increased philanthropic support for the schools, both in the near term and for future support.
Meet with current and prospective donors with the capacity to make gifts $25K+ with an emphasis on growing a pool of donors in the six and seven figure range; hold 75-100 unique meetings with prospects/donors annually; shepherd donors/prospects through every step of the donor solicitation cycle (identify-qualify-engage-solicit-steward).
Increase engagement and identify additional capacity from existing donors while simultaneously discovering, identifying, and soliciting new donors.
Strategically organize the Dean's time and resources to achieve advancement priorities. Staff the Dean appropriately in School/University leadership meetings and conversations, at donor solicitations, and special events.
Support the Dean and faculty in organizing and facilitating donor/prospect meetings, managing logistics for these meetings, and drafting briefing materials, follow-up reports, documents, and other external correspondence.
Maintain information about donors/prospects in the development database; prepare meeting briefing memos for the dean and other campus partners; draft meeting call reports for the University’s files.
Attend school, alumni, and campus functions to develop a strong understanding of the culture of the university, school, and alumni base.
Mentor, develop, and grow the ADOD for SHP by providing guidance and partnering on leadership, faculty, and donor meetings.
Other duties as assigned.
Skills and Abilities
Consistency:
Meet and exceed individual fundraising metrics
Successfully execute, devise and implement increasingly complex donor pipeline strategy
Demonstrate an ability to identify new prospects for assigned unit(s)
Provide management and oversight of the ADOD
Contributions:
Sustain a strong working relationship with deans, chairs, directors, and faculty members of assigned unit(s)
Demonstrate an ability to create an increasingly more complex donor pipeline strategy and work collaboratively with other unit leaders
Recruit and effectively manage volunteers
Competencies:
Demonstrate an ability to operate autonomously
Demonstrate an ability to lead multiple projects, sub-unit(s) or a team
Demonstrate an ability to identify new prospects for assigned unit(s)
Demonstrate an ability close multi-unit proposals
Leadership:
Demonstrate ability to successfully manage and lead a team (and/or staff volunteers) in a way that maximizes the potential of each team member
Lead a comprehensive unit or central development department/program
Expectations
Education/Qualifications:
Bachelor's degree and 5+ years of progressively responsible experience in fundraising as both a manager and major gifts officer. Preference will be given to candidates with experience in higher education.
Mental Demands:
Clarity of focus while juggling complex projects or deadlines
Working Conditions:
This position requires little physical effort. Will work evenings, weekends, or odd hours to meet resource-raising commitments. Typical working conditions with an absence of disagreeable elements. This position requires some early mornings and late evenings to accommodate meetings, travel, events, and external constituent’s schedules.
Benefits:
Office-centric hybrid work schedule
Comprehensive medical
Comprehensive no cost dental, and no cost vision insurance for employee and dependents
403(b) plan with matching employer contribution
Accrual of three weeks of annual vacation time, in addition to two personal holidays and three administrative leave days each year
Nine holidays, as well as four flex days
Parental leave
Significant tuition reductions
Professional development is highly valued at the Rutgers University Foundation, where employees are encouraged to look across the organization to develop new skills and abilities for professional career progression
$40 monthly cell phone reimbursement
Equal Employment Opportunity:
It is Foundation policy to provide equal employment opportunity to all its employees and applicants for employment regardless of their race, creed, color, national origin, age, ancestry, nationality, marital or domestic partnership or civil union status, sex, pregnancy, gender identity or expression, disability status, liability for military service, protected veteran status, affectional or sexual orientation, atypical cellular or blood trait, genetic information (including the refusal to submit to genetic testing), or any other category protected by law. As an institution, we value diversity of background and opinion, and prohibit discrimination or harassment based on any legally protected class in the areas of hiring, recruitment, promotion, transfer, demotion, training, compensation, pay, fringe benefits, layoff, termination or any other terms and conditions of employment.
COVID-19:
Under Presidential Executive Order 14042, Executive Order on Ensuring Adequate COVID Safety Protocols for Federal Contractors, employees must be fully vaccinated prior to beginning employment with the Rutgers University Foundation.
The Foundation will consider requests for exemptions from the executive order’s vaccination requirement for medical or religious reasons. However, if you are not granted an exemption for a medical or religious reason, you must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
Applications and Nominations
Applications and nominations will be accepted until a Director of Development for the School of Public Health is appointed. For most favorable consideration, applicants should submit a resume immediately. These nominations, expressions of interest, and applications will be handled with complete confidentiality and may be submitted directly to:
With over 20 years’ experience in executive search, Dan Grassi has partnered with clients ranging from startups to the Fortune 500. His experience spans most aspects of higher education, interactive entertainment and consumer products. Dan joined Boyden in 2003 and quickly rose to prominence by fostering collaboration domestically and globally, including the creation of an annual training conference.
Daniel C. Grassi - Full Biography
With over 20 years’ experience in executive search, Dan Grassi has partnered with clients ranging from startups to the Fortune 500. His experience spans most aspects of higher education, interactive entertainment and consumer products. Dan joined Boyden in 2003 and quickly rose to prominence by fostering collaboration domestically and globally, including the creation of an annual training conference.
Professional Focus
Over 20 years’ executive search experience
Member of the Not-For Profit Technology and Consumer practices
Sector-specific expertise in digital media, interactive entertainment and consumer products
Focuses on most functional areas, including development, advancement, general management, operations, finance and human resources
Partners with a range of organizations, from startups to Fortune 500 companies
Expertise in training and development; instrumental to creation of an annual training and development conference, which has enhanced how Boyden offices work together
Business Expertise
Partner in another leading global executive search firm
Recruiter at an Atlanta-based technology and healthcare search firm
Wendy Wilsker has dedicated her entire career to the non-profit sector, serving in leadership roles within charitable organizations and working alongside them as an executive recruiter and consultant. She excels at identifying the unique challenges and opportunities non-profits face, and partners with senior leadership to build successful organizational structures, teams and advancement programs.
Wendy Wilsker - Full Biography
Wendy Wilsker has dedicated her entire career to the non-profit sector, serving in leadership roles within charitable organizations and working alongside them as an executive recruiter and consultant. She excels at identifying the unique challenges and opportunities non-profits face, and partners with senior leadership to build successful organizational structures, teams and advancement programs.
Professional Focus
Over 30 years’ experience in the non-profit sector as an executive recruiter, senior manager, consultant and front-line fundraiser
Extensive background recruiting for a range of non-profit organizations including foundations, hospitals, educational and cultural institutions
Longtime engagement with charitable organizations in various capacities including strategic and organizational planning, advancing resource development, volunteer management and community outreach.
Business Expertise
Chief Advancement Officer at Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Greater Boston; joined agency as Senior Vice President of Development
Search Director at a global recruitment firm specializing in development and institutional advancement professionals; joined as Search Consultant
President of WSW Consulting, a firm focused on strategic fund development for non-profit organizations
Director of Development for Lahey Clinic Medical Center
Director of Institutional Advancement for The Rashi School
Director of Development, New England Regional Chapter of the American Jewish Committee
Campaign Manager for Combined Jewish Philanthropies
Practice Memberships
Global Cross-Sector Practices
Healthcare & Life Sciences
Social Impact
Additional Sector Expertise
Not-for-Profit
Higher Education
Education & Certifications
Bachelor’s degree from SI Newhouse School of Public Communication at Syracuse University
Affiliations & Awards
Board Member and Co-Chair, Governance and Nominating Committee, Women in Development of Greater Boston
Board Member, Westborough Amateur Hockey Association
Member, Association of Fundraising Professionals
Member, New England Association of Healthcare Philanthropy
Board Member, Congregation B’nai Shalom (former)
Board Member, URJ Northeast Camps (former)
Member, Non-Profit Committee and Membership Committee, The Boston Club (former)
Don’t check off all the boxes or meet every single requirement? We have learned that potential candidates hesitate when applying for a job unless they meet every single requirement. Boyden Boston is dedicated to inclusivity and valuing diversity and equity in the workplace. If this opportunity excites you, but your background may not be a perfect match, we still encourage you to apply.
Rutgers Foundation - Director of Development, School of Public Health - Job Description (PDF Download)
