DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT

FOUNDING DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT

Houston, TX

Who We Are and What We Believe:

Founded in 1997, Bottom Line is a nationally recognized nonprofit organization with a mission to partner with degree-aspiring students from first-generation and low-income backgrounds as they get into college, graduate, and launch meaningful careers. For over two decades, Bottom Line has provided consistent, one-on-one support to help students navigate the challenges of accessing and succeeding in college.

Today, we proudly serve over 7,000 students through our three core programs—College Access, College Success, and Bluprint—across regional offices in Massachusetts, New York City, Chicago, Ohio, Detroit, and soon, Houston. Our vision is to create a far-reaching ripple effect, launched by the transformative power of a college degree and a mobilizing first career, that uplifts individuals, families, and entire communities.

When you join Bottom Line, you will become a part of a team that combines passion with expertise to advance equity and opportunity for degree-aspiring students. In our dynamic, results-driven environment, your contributions will help shape brighter futures and stronger communities.

What You Will Do:

This is an opportunity to join a national organization as a member of the founding leadership team in Houston. The Founding Director of Development will be responsible for building the region’s fundraising strategy from the ground up and delivering year-over-year revenue growth. In close partnership with the Executive Director and aligned with Bottom Line’s overall development approach, you will help establish Bottom Line’s presence in the community and build a strong and sustainable base of philanthropic support.

As a frontline fundraiser, you will spend significant time externally engaging a portfolio of individual, corporate, and foundation partners – building early momentum while laying the foundation for a durable major gifts and institutional pipeline in a new market. You will support the Executive Director in engaging top-tier donors and collaborate with key connectors – including the Regional Advisory Board – to expand Bottom Line’s network and accelerate growth. Internally, you will work closely with the national Development Operations team to ensure alignment between organizational and local fundraising strategy, partner on centrally-led fundraising activities and utilize the robust supports and resources available.

The ideal candidate will combine strong donor instincts with disciplined follow-through and operate with agility and a builder mindset—someone who can bring structure to ambiguity, test what works, and continuously refine approach as we learn the Houston landscape. As a member of the founding leadership team, you will be comfortable establishing new relationships, translating Bottom Line’s national model into a compelling local case for support, and partnering closely with the Executive Director, Regional Advisory Board, and national colleagues to build early momentum. As the region grows and revenue goals expand, priorities and responsibilities will evolve accordingly offering meaningful opportunities to deepen strategy, strengthen systems, and broaden impact over time. The successful candidate will be excited to build a robust community of champions in order to bring critical college access and success support to students in the Houston community.

• This position is supported by a national grant during the region’s first year of operation, providing a strong foundation for program launch and growth.

Primary Responsibilities:

Fundraising Strategy and Planning

• Collaborate with the Executive Director to develop and implement a comprehensive fundraising strategy aligned to the organization’s overall fundraising approach, raising at least $500,000 in Year 1 and building to $3 million by Year 3.
• Set campaign targets and operational plans to guide annual fundraising efforts.
• Manage the path and progress toward fundraising goals using provided data and reporting tools to inform strategy and drive continuous improvement.
• Conduct prospect research and identify new funding opportunities to build and expand the donor base.
• Leverage Bottom Line’s signature major gifts program DEAL-Makers to build a local community of individual donors at the $5,000+ level.

Donor & Portfolio Management

• Spend significant time externally cultivating relationships with prospective major donors ($5,000+), with a focus on building the region’s base of philanthropic support.
• Identify, engage, solicit and steward a portfolio of donors and prospects.
• Partner with and support the Executive Director in managing top-tier donor relationships and strategies.
• With Executive Director, create and oversee a Donor Experience calendar, including events, experiences, and communications that engage the Houston portfolio, leveraging Bottom Line assets, campaigns and events.
• Represent Bottom Line at relevant events and engage in public issues that help increase visibility around Bottom Line's mission.
• Serve as the primary regional point of contact for all grant activity, including entering and maintaining all grant deadlines in Salesforce and coordinating closely with the central grants team, which leads the writing and submission of the majority of regional grants.
• Partner with the central grants team on grant strategy & execution, including providing regional context to inform strong narratives, writing assigned grants using the standard regional narrative, and participating in editing and review to ensure high quality submissions.
• Use Salesforce to manage the donor pipeline, track activity, and capture institutional knowledge

Connector Engagement & Advisory Board Support

• Partner with the Executive Director to engage key connectors (e.g. board members, champion donors, event hosts) to build and expand the region’s donor pipeline and long-term fundraising capacity.
• Support the creation and engagement of the Regional Advisory Board with a focus on how they support fundraising efforts, including meeting preparation, strategy development, and execution of Board action plans.

Cross Functional & Culture Leadership

• Serve as a member of the regional leadership team, contributing to strategic planning, cross-functional collaboration, and regional decision-making.
• Partner with program leadership to align messaging, elevate student stories, and connect fundraising efforts to program outcomes.
• Collaborate closely with the National Development Operations team to ensure alignment on strategy implementation, centralized execution to support regional fundraising efforts, and adherence to organizational systems and processes.
• Actively contribute to the Bottom Line development community across regions and national, sharing learnings, aligning practices, and supporting collective growth.
• Model inclusive, equity-driven fundraising practices and contribute to a culture of belonging and shared ownership of fundraising success.

Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without advanced notice.

Work Schedule:

Monday - Friday 9a – 5p or 10a – 6p (local time), flexibility may be requested; Additional hours as needed

Direct Reports:

None, with the potential to change as the role grows.

Expected Travel:

20% - local travel as needed

Who Should Apply:

If you meet the qualifications below, you should apply.

• Bachelor's degree in a relevant field or equivalent
• Minimum 5-8 years of development and external relations experience with a track record of growing a fundraising pipeline.
• Demonstrated success managing all aspects of the donor lifecycle and strong familiarity with major gifts fundraising with individuals, companies and foundations.
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to build relationships and engage with diverse stakeholders.
• Entrepreneurial spirit, especially in attracting new stakeholders.
• Polished and authentic presence with exceptional communication and interpersonal skills.
• Excellent organizational skills, with experience working in data-driven and process-driven organizations.
• Ability to collaborate effectively across teams and leverage available resources and supports.
• Demonstrated commitment to Bottom Line’s Mission, Vision, and Core Values

Preferred:

• Experience in major gift ($5,000+) individual giving fundraising and fundraising events.
• Experience working within a matrixed or multi-site organization.
• Familiarity with regional educational and nonprofit landscape a plus.

Learn about our benefits here.