The Associate Director of Next Generation and Affinity Giving plays a pivotal role in shaping the future of philanthropy at the university. In this role, you will serve as a key partner in developing and executing the next generation giving plan, with a focus on engaging students, recent alumni, and affinity groups. You will also collaborate with college and unit annual giving staff across the university to drive donor participation, grow pipeline, and deepen engagement. This position offers a unique opportunity to make a lasting impact by building a robust culture of giving within the Cornell community.

Key Responsibilities:

• Partner with Student and Young Alumni Programs & Leadership Annual Giving & Advancement Marketing to develop a culture of philanthropy among students, experimenting with new tactics and strategies to communicate impact and make giving a fun tradition at key times of year.

• With the division’s Next Generation Strategic Plan as a foundation, work with several stakeholders to develop and execute a plan to grow the number of student donors (undergraduate, graduate, and professional school) annually making gifts to any area of Cornell. Monitor progress against goals and identify new opportunities and innovative ideas to grow year over year.

• Oversee AAD’s crowdfunding campaigns, more than 50 projects per year, raising $500,000 to directly support student projects and organizations.

• Collaborate with college/unit annual giving staff and collaborate with Marketing Advancement team to develop a comprehensive strategy to grow donors and annual fund dollars for each college/unit through mass solicitations and other donor participation initiatives annually.

• Provide strategy, direction and support for giving campaigns in support of affinity partnerships, including Diverse Alumni Programs, Regional Programs, and Affinity Programs within Alumni Affairs

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree and 5 to 7 years relevant experience or equivalent combination.

• Must be highly organized, self-directed, and detail-oriented.

• Excellent communication skills, including verbal, written, and presentation skills.

• Excellent project management skills.

• Excellent interpersonal skills, including a track record of being incredibly responsive.

• Must be able to exercise judgment and discretion and make decisions that may impact the organization and its constituents.

• Demonstrated ability to effectively seek out, support, build and maintain long-term relationships with internal partners.

• Ability to work under pressure and thrive in a faced-paced environment and meet deadlines.

• Ability to thrive in an uncertain and changing environment, and maintain a positive attitude and flexibility

• Proven ability to develop new initiatives based on data, learnings, feedback, and collaboration.

• Proven ability to work in a complex organization and advocate for and/or drive change when needed.

• Experience in and/or demonstrated commitment to supporting diversity, equity, access, inclusion, and wellbeing.

• Ability to cultivate and develop inclusive and equitable working relationships with students, faculty, staff, and community members.