Senior Associate, Foundation Relations and Grantsmanship

Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) is the nation’s first and largest organization dedicated to serving the 2.5 million veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, from their first day home to the rest of their lives. IAVA strives to build an empowered generation of veterans through programs in four key impact areas: Health, Education, Employment and Community.

• Health - IAVA makes it a priority to ensure that both mental and physical health needs are being effectively addressed in our community, and has provided support to over 20,000 returning veterans nationwide.


• Education - With nearly a million new veterans headed back to school under the New GI Bill, IAVA has provided over 500,000 with the tools and support needed to make informed decisions about their education.


• Employment - No veteran should come home from Iraq or Afghanistan to an unemployment check. To fight shockingly high joblessness rates, IAVA’s Combat to Career initiative helped over 270,000 veterans in their transition to civilian careers in 2011.


• Community - Less than 1% of the country served in Iraq and Afghanistan – a stark contrast to the 12% that served during WWII. Building community, both online and on the ground, is a critical factor in fulfilling IAVA’s mission, which means bridging geographical divides to create a united, supported and proud movement of new veterans

An exciting opportunity exists to join a dynamic working environment involved with many of the most important issues facing the nation. Based in our New York City headquarters, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) is seeking an experience Senior Associate, Foundation Relations and Grantsmanship. This is an exciting opportunity to join the organization as it enters its second decade at the forefront of the veterans’ movement, advocating for our newest generation of heroes.

The Senior Associate will be responsible for implementing successful foundation and corporate fundraising strategies, developing a portfolio of sustainable, renewable, and upgradeable institutional donors. S/he will be responsible for proposal writing; donor stewardship; identifying and researching appropriate foundation prospects; and management of the foundation fundraising calendar.

The Senior Associate, Foundation Relations and Grantsmanship will report directly to the Director of Strategic Partnerships.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Prepare foundation and corporate foundation grant proposals, including proposal research, writing, proposal budgets and submittals;
• Maintain grants calendar: submissions, renewals, reports, funding projected and received;
• Identify and research prospective foundation and corporate foundation donors. Prepare foundation profiles as required;
• Steward foundation relationships through donor and prospect visits, donor reports and mailing, regular telephone contact, invitations to events, etc.
• Support the work of the Director of Strategic Partnerships and other development staff as needed;
• Travel or evening and weekend meetings required on an as needed basis;
• Other duties as assigned required.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

•  Bachelor’s degree with 7+ years of demonstrated success in foundation and corporate fundraising and proposal writing;
• Proven track record of developing successful foundation proposals and a demonstrated ability to manage foundation relationships required;
• Familiarity with foundation and corporate research tools;
• Practiced knowledge of donor/database management;
• Proven results in external-facing foundation relationship management.

TRAITS

• Positive attitude and empathy toward veterans;
• Decisive and analytical, a proactive problem solver;
• Stickler for precision, tracking on projects and detailed record keeping;
• Exceptional organization, written and verbal communication skills are necessary for success in this position;
• Ability to handle multiple tasks simultaneously, meet deadlines and achieve results in a fast-moving environment;
• Superior writing skills, and rigorous attention to detail;
• Solid computer skills, including acquiring ability to use Salesforce (IAVA’s database system) and other programs as needed;
• Strong facility and Microsoft Office Applications;
• Ability to handle multiple tasks, adhere to deadlines and work well under pressure, both independently and as part of a team;
• Commitment to the mission and goals of IAVA.

Start Date: Immediate

Application Deadline: Rolling

Salary and Benefits: Salary is commensurate with experience. IAVA provides comprehensive health and dental coverage, access to vision benefits, a Flexible Spending Account, Transportation Savings Account and a 403(b) retirement plan, in addition to thirty Paid Time Off days per year.

To Apply : Please apply here http://iava.org/careers/. Include a cover letter that concisely explains how your experience could be applied to IAVA. Applications without a cover letter will not be considered. No phone calls, please.

IAVA is an equal opportunity employer; VETERANS OF THE CONFLICTS IN IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN ARE HIGHLY ENCOURAGED TO APPLY.

To learn more about IAVA’s history, mission and model, click here.