Associate Director of Advancement Communications

Schenectady, NY (On-site)

$70K/yr – $76K/yrMid Level5+ years expFull time

Posted 3 hrs ago

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Job Summary

Own the end-to-end communications strategy for annual giving and donor engagement, coordinating multi-channel campaigns, content development, and project management.

  • Embedded partner for the Annual Giving team
  • Manage multi-channel fundraising campaigns and donor-facing communications
  • Oversee production schedules and project metrics

Job Description

Responsibilities

  • Strategy Management: Develop and maintain an annual communications calendar that supports annual giving, engagement, stewardship and other College Relations communications.
  • Annual Giving Partnership: Serve as the embedded communications partner for the Annual Giving team. Coordinate multi-channel fundraising campaigns, develop donor-facing communications and manage production schedules to ensure projects are delivered accurately, on time and in alignment with the College’s messaging priorities.
  • Project Management: Develop project timelines, track production schedules, manage approval processes and oversee multiple projects simultaneously. Monitor and report on communications metrics and recommend improvements to increase audience engagement and fundraising success. Maintain files, templates, mailing lists and communications assets to support project management and consistency.
  • Materials Development: Conceive, draft, edit and proofread fundraising appeals, donor impact reports, event invitations and other donor-facing communications that support annual fundraising and/or engagement objectives.
  • Email Marketing and Web Management: Administer and optimize the College Relations email marketing platform and website, including audience segmentation, testing, deployment, analytics and webpage maintenance.
  • Social Media Management: Develop and implement social media strategies that strengthen relationships with alumni, donors, parents and friends. Create engaging content, monitor conversations, analyze performance metrics and recommend opportunities to increase audience engagement.
  • Brand Alignment: Ensure that communications adhere to institutional brand standards, style guidelines, visual identity requirements and messaging priorities.
  • Vendor Management: Manage relationships with external vendors, including graphic designers, printers, mail houses and other service providers. Prepare project specifications, coordinate production schedules, review proofs and monitor quality.

Requirements

  • Bachelor’s degree and/or 5+ years of relevant experience in communications, marketing or advancement, preferably in higher education or nonprofit settings.
  • Familiarity with fundraising principles and alumni engagement best practices.
  • Excellent written, verbal and interpersonal communication skills.
  • Exceptional writing, editing, proofreading and storytelling skills, and superior attention to detail.
  • Experience writing content for print, social media and web.
  • Demonstrated ability to develop and execute multichannel communication strategies.
  • Experience in email marketing and social media marketing is required.
  • Strong organizational, planning and project management skills.
  • Ability to analyze and interpret data to guide communication strategies.

Preferred

  • Graphic design experience is strongly preferred.
  • Working knowledge of Google Workspace, MS Office, AI platforms, Adobe Creative Cloud, Canva, GiveCampus, Salesforce or comparable platforms is desirable.

Benefits

  • Generous Vacation, Sick, and Personal Time
  • Winter Recess Break in Addition to Paid Holidays (in accordance with policy)
  • Healthcare: Medical (PPO & HDHP), Dental, and Vision Insurance (Flexible Spending and Dependent Care Accounts)
  • Free On-Campus Fitness Facility Access and Discounts for On-Campus Wellness Programs
  • Pre and Post Tax participation in a 403(b) Retirement Plan
  • Salary Continuation Program in the event of Disability
  • Tuition Exchange
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Union College

We are a small, independent liberal arts college committed to integrating the humanities and social sciences with science and engineering in new and exciting ways. Union's rigorous academics take place in a diverse, welcoming campus environment that supports your personal growth, provides you with a wealth of opportunities to find and pursue your passions, and inspires you to engage with the local and global community through meaningful projects and volunteer work.

Schenectady, New York, USA
1.8K employees (101 in marketing)

Traffic Signals

Monthly Visitors
296.1K
Traffic Source Mix
Search
44.1%
Direct
48%
Referral
6.9%
Social
0.7%
Paid
0.2%

Headcount Trend

Current headcount: ~1.8K

Marketing Team

Marketing Team Size
73 (4% of company)
Median Career Experience
5 years
Median Tenure
4 years
Marketing Roles Posted (Last 30 Days)
2

Funding

Total Funding
$1.5M
Last Raise
$1.5M
Grant, 13 years ago

Funding History

  • Sep 2013
    Grant • $1.5M

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