Chief Advancement Officer (opens in new window / tab)

D EERFIELD A SSOCIATES has been retained by St. Mark’s School, located in Southborough, Massachusetts, to conduct a national search for a Chief Advancement Officer.

Chief Advancement Officer

Reporting to the Head of School and serving as a member of the senior administrative team, the Chief Advancement Officer (CAO) is responsible for advancing the school’s mission and strategic priorities through philanthropy, storytelling, and authentic relationship-building. The CAO leads a talented advancement team encompassing development, alumni, parent, and trustee engagement, while partnering across departments to ensure an integrated approach to communications and marketing that strengthens the school’s reputation and reach. By inspiring generosity and connection within the broader community, the CAO supports the school’s long-term financial sustainability and enhances its capacity to prepare students for their futures. This opportunity is available immediately and will be filled following a national search and the candidate of choice being selected.

St. Mark’s School Background

St. Mark’s School is a coeducational, Episcopal, preparatory school, situated on 210 acres in Southborough, Massachusetts, 25 miles from Boston. Founded in 1865 by Joseph Burnett, St. Mark’s is one of the oldest private boarding schools in New England and is a member of the Independent School League in competitive athletics. The school’s 65 teachers lead 375 boarding and day students through a rigorous curriculum and a full program of co-curricular activities.

Class size averages 12, with a student-faculty ratio of 6 : 1. Each department offers honors and advanced courses. Dr. Ivory D. Hills was appointed in 2024 as the new head of school. To learn more, please visit www.stmarksschool.org .

Primary Duties and Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership for all advancement functions, aligning philanthropy, communications, and engagement efforts with the school’s mission, values, and long-term strategic plan;
• Serve as a key advisor to the Head of School and Board of Trustees on issues related to philanthropy, reputation, and constituent relations;
• Design and execute a comprehensive fundraising strategy encompassing annual giving, major gifts, planned giving, capital campaigns, and endowment growth;
• Personally cultivate, solicit, and steward major donors and prospects, ensuring strong, enduring relationships with alumni, parents, and friends of the school;
• Foster a culture of philanthropy throughout the community by inspiring faculty, staff, trustees, and volunteers to understand and support the school’s advancement goals;
• Oversee alumni, parent, and trustee engagement programs that strengthen lifelong connection, volunteerism, and advocacy for the school;
• Lead and mentor a high-performing advancement team, setting clear goals, promoting collaboration and professional growth, and maintaining an environment of accountability and excellence;
• Partner with communications and marketing colleagues to ensure cohesive, mission-driven messaging that elevates the school’s visibility, reputation, and storytelling across all platforms;
• Collaborate with peers in admissions, finance, and academic leadership to ensure advancement strategies support institutional priorities and reinforce the school’s distinct value proposition;
• Work closely with the Board, preparing reports, guiding members’ engagement, and enhancing the board’s overall philanthropic effectiveness;
• Implement and support best practices in data management, analytics, and stewardship, using technology and metrics to inform decisions and measure impact;
• Serve as an ambassador and spokesperson for the school at major events and in the broader community, representing the mission with authenticity and enthusiasm;
• Ensure fiscal responsibility within the advancement office, managing budgets, resources, and operations to achieve ambitious yet sustainable goals;
• Prepare appropriate periodic reports for the Board of Trustees.

Additional Duties and Responsibilities

Desired Experience

Leadership and Personal Attributes

Disclaimer

The above job description is intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by employees assigned to this position. The job description is not intended to be construed as a comprehensive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required of individuals in this role. It is expected that the role and responsibilities will develop over time commensurate with performance.

The School’s Leadership

Head of School Dr. Ivory D. Hills

Dr. Ivory D. Hills began his tenure as St. Mark’s head of school on July 1, 2024. His appointment by the St. Mark’s Board of Trustees was announced on July 31, 2023, following an extensive nationwide search.

From 2011 to 2024, Dr. Hills served in various roles at Deerfield Academy—most recently dean of faculty and assistant head of school for strategy and planning—where he excelled as both a dedicated classroom teacher and an influential academic leader. In his role as dean of faculty and assistant head of school for strategy and planning, Dr. Hills oversaw a 140-member faculty and provided comprehensive support for academic, artistic, athletic, co-curricular, college advising, health and wellness, and residential programs. He fostered a culture of positivity among the faculty, emphasizing student-centered growth, and managed workload assignments, housing placements, leave replacements, and professional development requests. Additionally, he collaborated closely with the school’s advancement office to support faculty and curriculum-centered fundraising initiatives.

Dr. Hills is a distinguished scientist, holding a B.S. in chemistry from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from MIT. Before his tenure at Deerfield, he served as a senior research chemist at Merck Research Laboratories, leading medicinal chemistry teams involved in drug development for Alzheimer’s disease, migraine, schizophrenia, and colorectal cancer.

St. Mark’s School educates young people for lives of leadership and service.

Mission Statement

St. Mark’s School educates young people for lives of leadership and service. Founded in 1865 as an intentionally small residential community, the school challenges its students to develop their particular analytic and creative capabilities by both inspiring their academic and spiritual curiosity and kindling their passion for discovery. We value cooperation over self-interest, and we encourage all members of our community to explore their place in the larger world beyond our campus.

Diversity Statement

St. Mark’s School seeks to reflect the increasingly diverse world in which our students presently live and will live in the future. We intend to provide our students with a superior education in a community of students, parents, faculty, and staff that represents a variety of racial, ethnic, cultural, and religious backgrounds. We strive to ensure respect for all regardless of sex, gender, gender identity, race, religion, sexual orientation, ability, family structure or economic background.

St. Mark’s promotes awareness around cultural difference and provides affinity opportunities for students whose social or identity needs are not reflected in the dominant culture at St. Mark’s through Community and Equity Affairs.

At St. Mark’s, we have values that we trace directly to our Episcopal identity :

We also have community-wide practices that relate directly to these values :

As a result of disciplined fiscal management, prudent endowment oversight, and a successful capital campaign which concluded in 2022, today St. Mark’s School is on sound financial footing. The endowment stands at approximately $170M, and the school consistently balances its budget. St. Mark’s School major revenue source is tuition, and approximately 55% of the annual operating budget $40M comes from that source. The school awards financial aid to 121 out of 377 (32%) of its students. St. Mark’s School endowment per student (net of debt) is quite competitive relative to peer schools. The school’s annual fund for 2024-25 amounted to $2.7M, and capital gifts of approximately $4.5M were received.

St. Mark’s School continues to maintain its status as one of the nation’s most competitive schools. The combination of disciplined spending, capable endowment management, strong annual fund support, will position the school well. Increasing the endowment is seen as a high priority if the school is to remain in the position of strength it currently holds. The most recently completed accreditation affirmed the school’s many strengths and identified several initiatives and areas that the school needed to allocate additional resources as it seeks to retain its status as one of the nation’s top independent boarding schools. The Chief Advancement Officer position will be a key leader in positioning the school to be the educator of choice in preparing students for their future.

Target Hiring Salary Range

The target hiring salary range for this position is $275k – $300k, with the final salary determined based on the candidate’s experience, skills, and qualifications.

The Chief Advancement Officer position at St. Mark’s School offers an exciting and supportive work environment, a competitive salary and benefit package which includes medical and dental plans, a pension plan, tuition remission, and four weeks of paid vacation. Campus housing would be available if the candidate of choice does Administrator on Duty (AoD) rotation.

Equal Opportunity Employer

St. Mark’s School provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, sex, sexual orientation, disability or genetics, and any other characteristic or status protected by law. For the candidate of choice, a thorough background check including a criminal background check is required as a condition of employment.

Contact Information

To explore this career opportunity on a confidential basis, please send your resume, a letter of interest articulating your interest, skill sets and work experiences for this opportunity, a writing sample and a list of five (5) references (which will only be contacted if mutual interest is determined) to :

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