Stewardship Manager

Rhodes College•Memphis, TN

About The Position

This position manages key components of the college’s donor stewardship and recognition program, ensuring donors receive thoughtful communication and understand the impact of their philanthropy. The role plans and executes stewardship projects — including reports, acknowledgements, events, and recognition activities — in collaboration with colleagues across Advancement and campus partners. The position plays an active role in managing endowed and scholarship funds, monitoring donor intent, and coordinating meaningful engagement between donors, students, and college leadership. The ideal candidate is organized, collaborative, and comfortable taking initiative on complex projects. This is a part-time position.

Requirements

Bachelor’s Degree, required.
1-3 years of experience in donor relations, fundraising, advancement services, communications, nonprofit management, or a related field, required.
Excellent written communication skills for donor-facing reports, acknowledgements, and emails.
Strong project management skills with the ability to prioritize, set timelines, and meet deadlines.
Ability to analyze fund usage and translate financial or program information into clear donor updates.
Comfortable collaborating across departments and navigating competing priorities.
High attention to detail paired with the ability to see the “big picture” of donor experience.
Sound judgment, discretion, and professionalism when handling confidential and sensitive information.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office.
Flexible, evening, and weekend hours.
A complete application includes a cover letter and a resume.

Nice To Haves

Experience with donor databases/CRMs, preferred.

Responsibilities

Donor Recognition & Communications Facilitate donor recognition across print and web publications, in close collaboration with Communications.
Implement and manage recognition and acknowledgement programs (birthdays, anniversaries, milestones, etc.)
Partner with the Annual Fund team to recognize first-time donors, repeat donors, and consecutive giving milestones.
Stewardship Strategy & Program Management Develop, implement, and manage a comprehensive stewardship plan, including endowment and chair reports, events, video features, one-on-one visits, acknowledgment processes, and donor gifts.
Manage complex, carefully sequenced stewardship strategies for major donors.
Generate creative stewardship approaches to strengthen long-term donor relationships, partnering closely with senior gift officers and campus leaders.
Named Funds & Donor Intent Collaborate with Gift Management, Development, Finance, Financial Aid, faculty, and donors to establish named funds and monitor fund spending and impact.
Track beneficiaries and ensure timely reporting to donors on how their gifts are used.
Ensure donor intent is honored while aligning with institutional priorities through proactive relationship-building across campus.
Scholarship & Student Engagement Coordinate meaningful contact between donors and scholarship recipients, including meetings and student thank-you campaigns.
Work with Financial Aid to match students with the most appropriate scholarships and facilitate communication throughout the process.
Recognition from Leadership Identify opportunities for donor recognition from the President and other senior leaders, thinking strategically about timing, messaging, and impact.
Data & Reporting Maintain accurate contact notes and stewardship activity in the database.
Partner with the Development Assistant to process data imports for acknowledgments and thank-you letters.
Collaboration & Support Respond to ad-hoc requests related to scholarships, endowments, and donor reporting from departments across campus as needed.