Executive Director of the KCKCC Foundation

JOB CLASSIFICATION
Pay grade level: Grade 19
Compensation: $96,797 - $133,096 (commensurate with education and experience)
Employee category: Staff
Department: Foundation
Reports to: Executive Vice President
FLSA status: Exempt
Job Code: PR053FTEEXD
Location: Primarily Main Campus; other college locations as required

SUMMARY
The Executive Director of the Kansas City Kansas Community College (KCKCC) Foundation serves as the chief advancement and philanthropic officer for the College, responsible for advancing a comprehensive, modern fundraising and engagement strategy that supports student success, workforce development, capital priorities, and long-term institutional sustainability.

Reporting to the Executive Vice President and working in close partnership with the President, the Foundation Board of Directors, and College leadership, the Executive Director provides strategic direction, operational leadership, and accountable execution for all advancement functions. This role oversees major and principal gifts, annual giving, corporate and foundation relations, planned giving, donor stewardship, alumni engagement, communications, events, and campaign planning, ensuring philanthropic support for student scholarships, College programs, and operations, and advancing KCKCC’s strategic priorities.

The Executive Director leads the Foundation as an entrepreneurial, data-informed, donor-centered organization aligned with the mission and strategic priorities of a comprehensive community college serving a socially and economically multicultural community. The role requires a strong external presence, sophisticated relationship management, and the ability to translate institutional priorities into compelling philanthropic opportunities.

POSITION DESCRIPTION

Strategic Leadership and Advancement Strategy

• Provide strategic leadership for the Foundation, aligning fundraising priorities with the College’s strategic plan, enrollment goals, workforce and economic development initiatives, and capital needs.
• Design, implement, and continuously refine a comprehensive advancement strategy that integrates annual giving, major gifts, planned giving, corporate and foundation partnerships, grants, alumni engagement, and future comprehensive campaigns.
• Serve as a trusted advisor to the President, Executive Vice President, and senior leadership on philanthropy, donor engagement, advancement strategy, and external funding opportunities.

Major, Principal, and Planned Giving

• Manage a portfolio of high-capacity individual, corporate, and foundation prospects, with a focus on major and principal gifts.
• Lead prospect identification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies in collaboration with Foundation Board members, alumni leaders, and College leadership.
• Advance planned and deferred giving strategies that support long-term financial sustainability and endowment growth.
• Lead the development, growth, and stewardship of student scholarship funds, aligning donor intent with institutional priorities to expand access, affordability, and student success.
• Lead the development and stewardship of endowed funds and positions, including faculty, staff, and programmatic endowments, ensuring alignment with donor intent and long-term institutional priorities.

Grants and Institutional Giving

• Provide strategic oversight and coordination for philanthropic and private grant development in partnership with College leadership, academic units, and workforce and community partners.
• Align grant-seeking efforts with institutional priorities, donor intent, and long-term sustainability, ensuring effective stewardship of grant-funded initiatives.
• Collaborate with College staff responsible for public and private grants to ensure clear roles, alignment, and integration with broader advancement efforts.

Campaign Planning and Execution

• Provide leadership for the planning, feasibility assessment, and execution of multi-year capital and comprehensive campaigns aligned with institutional priorities.
• Develop campaign structures, gift tables, messaging frameworks, and performance metrics.
• Ensure disciplined campaign management, reporting, and accountability.
• Design campaign strategies that maximize student awareness, participation, and utilization of scholarship resources, ensuring awarded funds are effectively deployed to support access, retention, and completion.

Alumni Engagement & Alumni Association Oversight

• Provide strategic leadership for alumni engagement, fostering lifelong relationships that strengthen affinity, advocacy, volunteerism, and philanthropic support.
• Oversee the College’s Alumni Association, including governance, programming, communications, and alignment with Foundation and College priorities.
• Partner with College departments to develop alumni programming that supports student success, workforce pathways, mentorship, and community engagement.

Donor Engagement, Stewardship and Communications

• Ensure a best-in-class donor experience through timely, accurate acknowledgment, stewardship reporting, and meaningful engagement opportunities.
• Oversee Foundation communications, including donor communications, digital engagement, social media, impact reporting, and fundraising campaigns.
• Partner with College marketing and communications teams to ensure consistent messaging, brand alignment, and storytelling that demonstrates philanthropic impact.

Foundation Operations and Governance

• Direct the day-to-day operations of the Foundation, including staff leadership, budget management, financial controls, and compliance with all applicable regulations and policies.
• Partner with College finance and external auditors to ensure sound financial management, annual audits, and transparent reporting.
• Support and engage the Foundation Board of Directors and Alumni Association leadership through strategic agenda-setting, committee support, governance best practices, and leadership development.

Data, Systems and Performance Management

• Oversee the Foundation’s advancement systems and donor database to ensure data integrity, reporting accuracy, and effective use of analytics.
• Establish and monitor performance metrics and dashboards to drive fundraising, grant performance, alumni engagement, pipeline management, and continuous improvement.
• Leverage technology and data to modernize advancement, grant tracking, and alumni engagement practices.

    
External Relations and Partnerships

• Proactively cultivate long-term relationships with corporations, foundations, alumni, civic leaders, and community partners.
• Represent the College and Foundation at community, civic, philanthropic, and alumni events, strengthening the College’s visibility and reputation.
• Facilitate strategic connections between donors, alumni, and institutional leaders to advance shared goals.

Team Leadership and Culture

• Lead, mentor, and develop Foundation staff, fostering a collaborative, accountable, and high-performing culture.
• Build organizational capacity through talent development, role clarity, and process improvement.
• Promote community-centered philanthropy consistent with the College’s mission and values.

Other Duties

• Perform other duties as assigned by the President or Executive Vice President in support of institutional priorities.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES

• Demonstrated knowledge of and proven experience with modern fundraising practices, including major gifts, campaigns, corporate and foundation relations, and planned giving.
• Demonstrated ability to build and sustain high-level relationships with donors, board members, and senior leaders.
• Strong strategic thinking, project management, and execution skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to articulate complex institutional priorities to multicultural audiences.
• Financial acumen, including budgeting, forecasting, and nonprofit financial oversight.
• Proficiency with advancement databases, CRM systems, and data-informed decision-making.
• Ability to work effectively in a complex, mission-driven, public higher education environment.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS 

• Bachelor’s degree in business, nonprofit management, fundraising, public administration, or a related field.
• Minimum of five (5) years of progressive experience in fundraising or advancement, including major gift development.
• Demonstrated experience leading or contributing significantly to multi-year fundraising or capital campaigns.
• Proven experience supervising and developing staff.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS 

• Master’s degree in nonprofit management, business, higher education administration, or a related discipline.
• Documented record of major and principal gift solicitation and closure.
• Experience working with and supporting a governing or foundation board.
• Experience in higher education advancement, preferably within a community college or public institution.
• Experience with Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge fundraising management software.
• Familiarity with Franklin Covey’s The Four Disciplines of Execution methodology.

WORKING CONDITIONS
While performing the duties of this position, the employee is regularly required to sit, stand, walk, talk, and hear. Occasional lifting or moving of materials may be required. Significant local and regional travel, as well as evening and weekend work, is expected to meet operational and donor engagement needs.

WORK SCHEDULE
Full-time, 40 hours per week, typically Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., with flexibility required for evenings, weekends, and special events.

***This job description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by the employee occupying this position. Employees will be required to follow any other job-related instructions and to perform any other job-related duties requested by their supervisor. This job description may be revised upon development of other duties and changes in responsibilities.

KCKCC is an Equal Opportunity Employer