Managing Director of Development bei KIPP

About KIPP
KIPP Public Schools is a national network of free, open-enrollment, college-preparatory public schools committed to partnering with students and families to disrupt systemic educational inequity and create a future without limits. Over 120,000 students attend one of the 280 KIPP schools that operate in 27 regions across the United States. KIPP Philadelphia Schools Public Schools (KPPS) is a part of the national KIPP Public Schools network and currently leads eight schools serving over 3,000 students in North and West Philadelphia. By 2030, KPPS will lead ten schools serving approximately 4,000 students.  

Our Mission
Together with families and communities, we create joyful, academically excellent schools that prepare students to pursue the paths they choose—college, career, and beyond—so they can lead fulfilling lives and build a more just world.

Life at KIPP Philly 

At KIPP Philly, we know that talented, committed, and culturally competent educators are the driving force behind our students' success. By creating a school experience that affirms identities, celebrates individuality, and challenges every student to grow, our teachers and leaders amplify the potential of every child. We are dedicated to building a professional environment grounded in joy, candor, care, and community—a place where educators can bring their authentic selves, receive world-class development, and collaborate with peers equally devoted to the work. Here’s what you can expect: 

• Commitment to Anti-Racism and Equity: Join a team deeply dedicated to anti-racism, equity, and culturally responsive practices, working to eradicate systemic barriers and create truly inclusive environments. 

• Joyful and Inclusive Community: Be part of a close-knit, diverse network of educators who value authenticity, collaboration, and mutual respect, fostering an environment where both adults and children can thrive. 

• Rewarding Impact: Your dedication and hard work will be recognized through competitive compensation structures, including performance-based bonuses that reward meaningful outcomes. 

• Unparalleled Career Growth: Gain access to strategically designed leadership pathways, grounded in research and tailored to help you grow professionally. From one-on-one coaching to high-quality professional development, we’re invested in your future. 

• Authentic Leadership: Show up as your authentic self every day, modeling for students the power of embracing their identities and inspiring them to do the same. 

• Student-Centered Excellence: We believe strong relationships and precise preparation are critical to increasing learning outcomes. Together, we create joyful, affirming spaces where students and educators excel. 

• Comprehensive Support: Experience robust whole-person support, including personalized coaching, mental health resources, and team-building initiatives that nurture professional and personal well-being. 

Position Overview

KIPP Philadelphia Public Schools (KPPS) is seeking an exceptional Managing Director of Development (MDD) to design, lead, and execute our development and fundraising program during a pivotal moment in our history. With new leadership at the helm and the launch of our bold 2030 Strategic Plan, KPPS is entering its next era of growth and impact—poised to deepen our academic excellence, expand opportunities for our 3,500 students, and strengthen our role as a leader in public education in Philadelphia.

The MDD will serve as a key architect and driver of KPPS’s fundraising strategy, ensuring that our philanthropic efforts are tightly aligned with the priorities of our 2030 vision. Specifically, the MDD will:

1. Drive Fundraising Strategy: Design and execute a comprehensive development strategy that fuels the 2030 plan, effectively leveraging the CEO, Board of Trustees, and senior leadership to secure transformational support.
    

2. Grow and Steward Partnerships: Expand and fortify philanthropic support from individuals, foundations, and corporations by cultivating new relationships and deepening existing ones, managing a robust portfolio of major gift donors, and ensuring donors feel inspired and connected to KPPS’s mission and future.
    

3. Build a High-Performing Team: Lead, coach, and develop a two-person (in addition to you) development team, building systems and practices that ensure clear communication, data-driven progress monitoring, and ambitious goal achievement.
    

The MDD will report directly to the CEO and serve as a thought partner to the senior leadership team. They will act as the staff liaison to the Board’s Development Committee and collaborate closely with colleagues across the regional office—particularly the CFO and Chief of Staff—to align fundraising with financial planning, strategic priorities, and organizational storytelling.

This is a highly visible, entrepreneurial role for a proven development leader eager to help shape the future of KPPS at a moment of tremendous opportunity.

Duties and Responsibilities

This role requires an excellent relationship builder and strategic thinker who can both develop dynamic funder relationships with Major Gift prospects of various donor types and operate with intentionality, always considering how to best leverage and prioritize these relationships. The MDD will identify and formalize deliverable and impactful funding opportunities that can appeal to and inspire individual, institutional, and corporate donors. They will also be skilled in “managing up” and understanding when and how to embed leadership (i.e., the CEO and Board members) to advance a donor relationship. The MDD will share responsibility for providing strategic direction to ensure the organization’s fiscal health through resource development. 

Strategy & Execution

• Develop and maintain a comprehensive operating plan for fundraising that reflects both the art and science of development work—pairing the disciplined foundation of a high-functioning fundraising approach with creative strategies that inspire and engage donors. This plan will include a formalized approach to individual and major gifts activity for the organization, as well as a systematized calendar of cultivation and stewardship activities that deepen relationships over time.

• Maintain and improve development systems that include tracking for individual, foundation and corporate giving and expanded use of the SalesForce donor management system.

• Establish measurable goals and metrics for fundraising activities and results in order to gauge effectiveness. 

Fundraising 

• Serve as lead fundraiser, leading a team to secure gifts from individual donors, corporate partners, and foundations. 

• Build personal, philanthropic relationships with individual donors and prospects that inspire greater giving and engage new supporters, while using strategic relationship management practices to track activity. Personally identify, cultivate, and solicit a portfolio of individual and major gifts for KIPP Philadelphia.

• Develop and manage the board fundraising strategy, educating board members about the role they play and supporting them with engaging their own portfolios. Serve as the fundraising liaison to the Board.

• Represent KIPP Philadelphia to the philanthropic and civic community and serve as a knowledgeable ambassador in various public and private settings. 

People Management 

• Partner with the Chiefs, Board of Trustees, School Leaders and other members of the Regional Office team to make sure that the development team receives the support needed to meet all development-related goals. Act as the primary advisor to KIPP Philadelphia’s leadership in managing their respective fundraising portfolios, and lead the multi-faceted preparation needs of other solicitors. 

• Coach, support and supervise members of the development team who are responsible for existing fundraising activities (including the following), building their skillset, expertise and capacity. 

  • Institutional giving, which includes management of the grant application process

  • Creation of individual proposals for Major Donors

  • Donor information, acknowledgement processes and tracking systems

  • Managing relationships or supports from outside vendors 

  • Designing engaging events and activations to expand our community of supporters

  • Creation of opportunities for volunteers to engage and support KIPP Philadelphia’s mission

• Create and assign donor portfolios for front-line fundraising staff, including the CEO, and meet regularly as a team to evaluate and refine cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies.

Qualifications, Skills, Qualities: 

The ideal candidate is ambitious, strategic, eager to grow and learn, and excited to take on a new challenge. They must be diplomatic and enjoy establishing effective systems and relationships to achieve goals. Highly developed interpersonal skills are essential. The following key competencies are a must for this position:

• Strategy Development & Collaboration: translates strategy into actionable plans and timelines, and drives effective allocation of resources; draws insight from multiple sources to shape vision and strategy; invests time and energy into building collaborative relationships and ensuring enabling structures are in place that allow communication, alignment, and thought partnership to thrive. Establishes trusting, collaborative relationships with school and program leaders to elevate the importance of fundraising across the organization

• Sales Orientation and Drive for Results: leads and creates a team culture that encourages the pursuit of funds in a scarce environment; communicates progress against targets, and uses data and coaching to motivate and equip team to achieve performance goals

• Persuasive Oral and Written Communication: Sets high expectations for the quality and persuasiveness of communications; conveys genuine passion and organizational commitment when interacting with internal and external stakeholders; is able to translate story and brand for various audiences, designing messages that resonate and motivate; expertly delivers high yield pitches to funders and secures high percentage of target asks

• High-Level Funder Engagement and Stewardship: Engages with prospective and current funders to successfully build long-term relationships; positions CEO and Board to build and sustain key funder relationships

In addition, the candidate must have the following qualifications:

• Authentic commitment to and passion for the KPPS mission and vision

• Demonstrated alignment with our KPPS core values: Cultural Competence, Children First, Ownership, Community

• Self-awareness and ability to reflect on your practice, biases, and leans

• Demonstrated commitment to inclusion, anti-racism, and eradicating anti-Blackness

• Ability to motivate, inspire, and hold others accountable

• Desire to learn and grow

• Operates with a solutions-orientation; demonstrated ability to problem-solve and adapt to a changing landscape

• Possesses the gravitas, poise and confidence to steward major donors, and knowledge of when to leverage the senior leadership’s time and energy. 

• Detail and systems-oriented, able to develop and implement critical internal structures and processes

• Knowledge of and comfort with complex financial data

• Experienced, expert development professional with ideally 7+ years of experience in fundraising, preference given if at education or youth-focused organizations (strongly preferred)

• Mastery of Microsoft Office (particularly Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint) required; fluency with relationship databases (required). 

• Bachelor’s Degree (required)

Preferred Start Date: November 2025

Compensation

Salaries at KPPS are competitive, equitable, and commensurate with experience. The salary range for this position is $140K - $155K. All KPPS staff members enjoy a comprehensive benefits package, a 403B matching program, and access to free financial advising services.

Application

KIPP Philadelphia Schools is an equal opportunity employer.  Employees are selected on the basis of ability without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, marital status, or sexual orientation, in accordance with federal and state law.