About Us
At the National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI), we are a vibrant, nonprofit organization committed to transforming education. We believe that every student deserves access to high-quality math and science education. Since our founding in 2007, we’ve empowered over 2.9 million students and 72,000 teachers across 1,800 high schools in 43 states. Our staff are the heartbeat of our mission, driving impactful programs that foster success in the 21st-century global economy.
NMSI is a remote-first organization, allowing staff members to work primarily from their home office. Staff must have a dedicated, distraction-free workspace with reliable high-speed internet. We value autonomy, flexibility, and effective communication across time zones, and support a culture of collaboration through virtual tools and regular check-ins.
What You’ll Do All Day
The Director, Philanthropy (Corporate & Foundation) will contribute to NMSI’s mission by helping execute and advance fundraising strategies that support strategic programmatic growth, aligned with priorities set by the Senior Director, Business Development (Philanthropy) and connected to broader Business Development team and organizational goals. This role will steward existing corporate and foundation donors, cultivate new philanthropic opportunities, and help translate NMSI’s work into compelling funder-facing narratives, proposals, reports, and communications.
Through a mix of portfolio management, donor stewardship, proposal and report development, prospecting, and cross-functional collaboration, the Director will serve as a key relationship builder and project manager across NMSI’s philanthropic partnerships. This individual will be expected to understand NMSI’s programs deeply, identify the right story for the right donor audience, and work across teams to gather the data, examples, collateral, and insights needed to advance funding relationships.
Your day-to-day activities will include:
Portfolio Management, Cultivation, and Stewardship
Create a vision and strategy for a growing portfolio of corporate and foundation funders.
Manage and execute comprehensive portfolio plans, including cultivation, solicitation, stewardship, reporting, strategic communications, site visits, and donor engagement activities to support the Philanthropy team to meet or exceed annual revenue goals.
Build and maintain the portfolio by serving as a thoughtful and responsive partner who can cultivate trust, advance opportunities, and steward long-term engagement.
Prepare for and support donor meetings by developing agendas, briefing materials, talking points, follow-up notes, collateral, and next-step plans.
Leverage Salesforce and other systems consistently to track donor activity, reporting requirements, next steps, relationship history, deadlines, expected revenue, and progress across the portfolio.
Proposals, Reporting, and Donor-Facing Communications
Oversee all or much of the external grant reporting process, including tracking deadlines, coordinating cross-functional inputs, gathering data and impact examples, drafting narrative content, and ensuring final submissions are accurate, compelling, and on time.
Develop high-quality proposals, concept notes, reports, letters of inquiry, donor updates, and other funder-facing materials that clearly communicate NMSI’s impact, priorities, and funding opportunities. When necessary, work closely with the Marketing and Communications team to translate programmatic data, outcomes, and evaluation findings into clear and compelling donor-facing language that connects NMSI’s work to funder priorities and demonstrates impact.
Identify the right story for each donor audience and pull together relevant examples, assets, collateral, and data to support cultivation, solicitation, reporting, and stewardship.
Prospecting and Revenue Growth
Identify and prioritize new philanthropic prospects in alignment with NMSI’s mission, strategic plan, program priorities, and development objectives.
Drive ongoing research and analysis (in collaboration with the Business Development Operations team) to identify new funding opportunities, understand donor priorities, and stay current on trends in education, STEM, workforce development, philanthropy, and corporate social impact.
Represent NMSI at conferences, meetings, site visits, and other external events to build relationships, showcase NMSI’s work, and generate interest from potential partners.
Cross-Functional Collaboration and Internal Coordination
Collaborate closely with internal teams, including Program, Finance, Program Research & Evaluation, Marketing and Communications, and Business Development, to gather the information, data, stories, budgets, and collateral needed to support donor strategy and deliverables.
Manage internal requests and timelines with strong attention to detail, clear communication, and disciplined follow-through to ensure donor-facing work moves forward efficiently and accurately.
Contribute to broader Business Development Philanthropy efforts as a key member of a highly collaborative, mission-driven team.
Other duties as assigned.
The Director, Philanthropy (Corporate & Foundation), will report to the Senior Director, Business Development (Philanthropy), and is a full-time, regular position offering the flexibility to work from anywhere within the contiguous United States. Occasional travel may be required for in-person meetings, conferences, donor visits, site visits and events.
What We’re Looking For
We seek individuals who are:
Experienced fundraisers and donor relationship managers: You have at least five years of growing responsibility in fundraising, corporate and/or foundation relations, institutional giving, business development, or a related field, with demonstrated success cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding significant philanthropic partnerships.
Strong writers and storytellers: You are skilled at developing compelling narratives for proposals, reports, donor communications, and other external materials. You can synthesize complex programmatic information and data into clear, persuasive language that resonates with donor audiences.
Skilled project managers, action oriented, and results driven: You are focused on prioritizing tasks, solving problems, attention to detail, and delivering measurable results that align with our organizational priorities. You are able to manage donor portfolios, proposal and reporting timelines, meeting preparation, follow-up, and internal coordination with discipline and consistency.
Relationship-minded and team-oriented: You build strong internal and external relationships, communicate with clarity and professionalism, and foster collaboration across teams. You are comfortable working with colleagues across departments to gather information, align strategy, and move work forward.
Agile strategic learners: You may not have led every element of fundraising strategy before, but you bring the curiosity, judgment, and aptitude to grow into a more strategic portfolio leadership role over time. You can adapt as priorities shift, navigate ambiguity, and work across different departments to gather what is needed.
Tech-savvy and systems-disciplined: You are comfortable using technology to strengthen organization, communication, and accountability. Experience with a CRM is required; Salesforce experience is preferred.
Mission-aligned: You are energized by NMSI’s mission and interested in becoming a subject matter expert in NMSI’s work, programs, outcomes, and donor-facing value proposition.
Physical Requirements: Remote employees working from a home office must be able to sit or stand for extended periods, use a computer and other standard office equipment, and have the capability to perform the required tasks and participate in virtual meetings, as well as occasionally in-person meetings. Employees must be able to travel overnight away from their home office environment as needed. Reasonable accommodation can be arranged if necessary.
What Do We Offer?
The starting salary range for this position is $134,640 to $154,836 commensurate with experience. We take pay equity seriously and strive to ensure fair compensation for all team members. Our comprehensive benefits package includes:
Medical, dental, and vision coverage (85% paid for employees and a significant portion for dependents)
401(k) with up to 6% employer match, fully vested on day one
Potential annual salary increases and bonuses based on organizational performance
Referral bonuses
A remote-first work environment
Monthly telecommunications stipend
25+ paid holidays, including a one-week summer break and two-week winter break
Generous Paid Time Off, starting at 14 days per year, that begins accruing with your first paycheck
A paid personal day that is immediately available on your start date
Access to LinkedIn Learning for continuous professional development
Annual gift card for birthdays and work anniversaries, plus additional perks for significant milestone anniversaries, including paid sabbaticals and cash bonuses
Nine weeks of fully paid parental leave, applicable regardless of gender identity, and includes births by surrogate, adoption, or foster placement of a child
Additional Information
Candidates must pass county, state, and federal-level criminal background checks as a condition of employment. Positions with fiduciary responsibilities may require additional checks.
This job description is not exhaustive; additional functions and requirements may be assigned as necessary.
Equal Opportunity Employer
NMSI provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants, regardless of race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, marital status, or veteran status. We comply with all applicable laws governing nondiscrimination in employment.
