Chief Development Officer

Chief Development Officer

• Freedom Reads
• March 25, 2024
• New Haven, CT/Remote

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Please download the Position Profile (to the right) to read the full version.

About Freedom Reads

Founded in 2020 with a $5.25 million grant from the Mellon Foundation, Freedom Reads is the only organization in the nation using literature, design, and architecture to create transformative experiences for people in prison and to meaningfully elevate the dignity of the millions of Americans touched by the criminal legal system. In the tradition of Freedom Schools and Freedom Riders, Freedom Reads builds Freedom Libraries in prisons, jails, and juvenile detention facilities. Thus far, Freedom Reads has opened more than 285 Freedom Libraries across 10 state and 37 prisons and juvenile detention centers from California to Colorado to Connecticut.

Each Freedom Library features a curated 500-book collection featuring such authors as Gabriel García Márquez, Dashiell Hammett, James Baldwin, and Natalie Diaz.

The bookcases are carved from solid wood – maple, cherry, walnut, or oak – and are positioned in the middle of an open space. As Alberto Manguel argues in The Library at Night, “a circular library more generously allows the reader to imagine that every last page is also the first.”

The Freedom Library changes the experience of everyone who enters a prison, from those serving time to the prison staff. In an environment where the freedom to think, to contribute to a community, and even to dream about what is possible is too often curtailed, Freedom Reads reminds those inside that they have not been forgotten.

Freedom Reads also aspires to change the larger narrative surrounding the criminal legal system in the United States, moving from a framework of punishment and retribution to one of possibility and transformation. With its goal of placing a Freedom Library in every cellblock in every prison in America, Freedom Reads’ mission is to inspire and confront what prison does to the spirit.

The Opportunity
Freedom Reads seeks an experienced, growth-oriented, and mission-driven Chief Development Officer to catalyze a new phase of transformational growth and impact for the organization. This pivotal leadership role is responsible for designing and executing both a short-term and long-term fundraising plan that ensures the strategic dentification, cultivation, engagement, solicitation, and stewardship of individual, corporate, government, and foundation donors.

A member of Freedom Reads’ Senior Leadership Team, the Chief Development Officer reports to the Founder & CEO and works closely with him and with other staff, board, donors, foundations, government representatives, and strategic partners on diverse fundraising initiatives. Further growth in development staff is anticipated as general support revenue increases. This leader will build, lead, and manage Freedom Reads’ development strategy and operations to achieve optimal performance in a culture of equity, cooperation, and passionate commitment to the mission. The Chief Development Officer will be responsible for actively marketing the organization to external stakeholders and increasing its capacity to raise money, expand its funding base, and reach new donor constituencies. As such, the Chief Development Officer will be an inspirational fundraising leader, someone who is entrepreneurial and enjoys driving growth and impact for an organization dedicated to expanding access to literature as a means of transforming lives and perceptions within and beyond America’s criminal justice system. They will have experience successfully discovering and engaging new donors. They will be intellectually curious, highly adaptable, resourceful, and able to embrace change in a nimble and growing organization.Freedom Reads has enjoyed considerable fundraising success during its first 3years of operation and its development program has grown organically to date. However, it must now chart a more strategic course and significantly expand its donor base as the organization aspires to raise at least $30 million over the next 3 years. A more structured approach to fundraising infrastructure, processes, and programs needs to be implemented to steward, support, and expand the donor pool effectively. As such, a core charge of the Chief Development Officer is to increase the operational capacity, professionalization, and strategic sophistication of Freedom Reads’ fundraising efforts to maximize current and evolving donor interest, especially from individuals and philanthropic foundations.

Candidate Profile

Professional Skills & Competencies

• Eight or more years in nonprofit fundraising with increasingly responsible experience in the creation and execution of development strategy and programs, and an established track record of increasing philanthropic revenue.
• Hands-on experience as both a front-line fundraiser and relationship builder with the demonstrated succuss in raising major gifts and achieving ambitious annual goals in a small, nimble, growth-oriented environment.
• Broad knowledge of all functional areas of a comprehensive development program (e.g., individual, institutional, major, and annual giving; digital fundraising; stewardship; operations); leadership in a major fundraising campaign (planning, implementation, and successful conclusion); and at least three years of experience identifying, cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding major gifts from individual and institutional donors at the level of six-figures or greater.
• Demonstrated success in developing strategic, innovative fundraising plans, and executing those plans to grow fundraising and exceed goals.
• Deep, existing relationships with major donors and foundation prospects in the field that could be leveraged to expand Freedom Reads’ fundraising networks and support.
• Experience working cross-functionally and collaborating with executives, senior staff, and board and other volunteer leaders on development-related activities, including effective case messaging, cultivation and stewardship strategies, and strategic counsel that increases their success in fundraising.
• Knowledge of, and fundamental adherence to the principles, ethics, and best practices of modern fundraising, including the integration of various giving programs to diversify the funding base and cultivate greater donor commitments.
• Demonstrated commitment to, and understanding of, how to build diversity, equity, and inclusion in the development function; culturally competent with respect to issues such as racial, cultural, religious, sexual, and gender identity.
• Skilled at delivering solutions in evolving, multi-cultural environments.
• Track record of managing complex projects, anticipating, and identifying obstacles or challenges, and proposing and implementing solutions through sound decision-making.
• Experience successfully managing budgets and revenue forecasts.
• Working knowledge of modern data management practices and innovations that can streamline development processes and contribute to the integration of related functions.
• CFRE Certification or similar fundraising-specific training would be a plus.

Personal Characteristics

• Passion for the mission and work of the Freedom Reads, including a demonstrated commitment to the power of books to enrich the spirit, transform lives, and change the narrative around prisons in America. An understanding of the criminal justice system and incarceration is a plus.
• Entrepreneurial self-starter with an ambitious, growth-oriented, goal-oriented mindset, while also exercising an appropriate level of patience and flexibility in adapting to changing circumstances.
• Superior skills in organization, planning, and attention to detail, as well as the ability to encourage and coach these skills in others.
• Unimpeachable integrity and mature judgment in handling sensitive information. Elevates institutional goals beyond personal gain, ensuring efforts are mission focused and quality-driven.
• High emotional intelligence and the interpersonal ability to develop and sustain authentic relationships with a diverse array of colleagues, donors, board members and collaborators, prioritizing an ethos of servant leadership, respect, diplomacy, patience, equity, and inclusivity.
• Superb verbal and written communication skills, as well as a good sense of humor, with the stature, demeanor, and comfort level to serve as a highly visible and public-facing ambassador of Freedom Reads.
• Ability to effectively and inspirationally communicate the Freedom Reads’ work and impact to donors.

Compensation & Benefits The salary range for this position is $180,000 to $215,000, commensurate with experience. Benefits include generous paid time off, full health and dental insurance, as well as life insurance and long-term disability coverage. While Freedom Reads is open to candidates who live and work remotely, the Chief Development Officer will be expected to travel from time to time, including to the headquarters in Connecticut.

To express interest in this role, please submit your materials or email . All inquiries and discussions will be considered strictly confidential.