Grants & Donor Relations Program Manager (Part-Time)

The Jerusalem Fund for Education and Community Development

Washington, DC | Part-time, On-site (20 hours/week)

About The Jerusalem Fund

Established in 1977 by Dr. Hisham Sharabi and colleagues, The Jerusalem Fund for Education and Community Development is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Washington, DC. The Fund’s mission is to foster greater awareness about Palestine, in the United States and abroad, and to ameliorate the lives of Palestinians in Palestine and the diaspora.

The Fund advances this mission through three interconnected programs:

• • The Palestine Center – policy analysis, education, and public programming
  • The Humanitarian Link – humanitarian and community-development grants to Palestinian institutions
  • Gallery Al-Quds – cultural programming, exhibitions, and arts initiatives

The Fund’s Humanitarian Link program provides small grants—typically up to $5,000—to non-governmental, non-profit organizations serving Palestinians in education, health, culture, and community development, with structured application and reporting processes throughout the year.

Learn more at www.thejerusalemfund.org.

Position Summary

The Grants & Donor Relations Manager is a key part-time staff position (20 hours/week) that strengthens The Jerusalem Fund’s capacity to steward donors, manage grants, and modernize our development systems—including the thoughtful integration of digital tools and generative AI into our day-to-day work.

Working under the direction of the Executive Director and in close collaboration with the Finance & Operations Manager and the Program & Communications Manager, this role will:

• • Ensure timely, accurate processing of all donations (especially check-based gifts) and deposits into the appropriate accounts and funds
  • Oversee donor acknowledgements, tax letters, and personalized thank-you communications, including AI-assisted drafting and personalization with strong human review
  • Serve as primary administrator for the Fund’s Bloomerang Giving Platform (CRM & fundraising tools), leading our donor database migration and digital transformation in development operations
  • Manage the full grants cycle for the Humanitarian Link and related grant-making, and maintain strong relationships with Palestinian partner organizations
  • Help build an AI-enabled but values-driven donor relations and grant-management system—using tools like Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, and NotebookLM to improve quality and efficiency, while keeping human judgment, ethics, and mission at the center

This is an ideal role for someone who is highly organized, detail-oriented, AI-curious, and deeply committed to Palestine, with a strong sense of stewardship for donors and grantees alike. While the position will begin as a part-time role at 20 hours per week at $30 per hour, contingent upon successful performance during an initial 90-day period and organizational needs, it may transition to a full-time salaried position in the low $60,000s annually.

Reports to: Executive Director

Works closely with: Finance & Operations Manager; Program & Communications Manager; interns and volunteers

Key Responsibilities

1. Donor Relations & Stewardship
   • Develop and implement a donor stewardship rhythm that ensures every donor receives timely, accurate, and warm acknowledgement of their support.
   • Draft and coordinate donation acknowledgement letters, IRS-compliant tax receipts, and annual giving summaries for donors, ensuring they are sent promptly and stored systematically.
   • Use generative AI tools (e.g., Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, NotebookLM) to draft, refine, and personalize donor correspondence (letters, emails, impact updates) more efficiently, while always exercising human judgment, editing for tone, and ensuring alignment with the Fund’s mission and ethics.
   • Manage the production of personalized thank-you postcards and letters for major donors, coordinating with the Board Chair and Vice Chair for their signatures and personal notes, and ensuring mailing is timely and well-documented.
   • Respond to donor inquiries (by phone, email, and in person) regarding donations, grant impact, giving options, and tax documentation, logging key interactions in the CRM.
   • Help cultivate and retain donors at all levels (small recurring donors, mid-level supporters, and major donors) by providing excellent service and proactive communication.
2. Gift Processing, Record-Keeping & CRM (Bloomerang + AI)
   • Serve as lead staff user and administrator for the Bloomerang Giving Platform (CRM & fundraising tools), completing vendor trainings, staying current on product updates, and helping the team understand how to use Bloomerang’s insights and reports.
   • Process all incoming contributions (checks, online gifts, cash, wires, etc.) with high accuracy, ensuring gifts are:
   • Logged promptly in Bloomerang
   • Coded correctly to the appropriate fund, campaign, and program (e.g., Humanitarian Link, Palestine Center, Gallery Al-Quds, general support, specific appeals like Gaza emergency relief)
   • Deposited in a timely manner in coordination with the Finance & Operations Manager and in accordance with established procedures
   • Lead the migration of the Fund’s historical donor records into Bloomerang, including data cleanup, deduplication, and segmentation, in partnership with the Executive Director and Finance & Operations Manager.
   • Use generative AI tools (under the Executive Director’s guidance) to support tasks such as data hygiene, record categorization, and quality checks—for example, generating potential duplicate lists, standardizing address formats, or summarizing donor histories—while maintaining strict confidentiality and accuracy.
   • Establish and document standard operating procedures (SOPs) for gift processing, data entry, tax letters, and acknowledgements to ensure consistency, continuity, and audit readiness.
   • Maintain the integrity of the donor database by performing regular data hygiene checks, managing duplicates, updating addresses and contact information, and tracking engagement.
   • Work with the Executive Director to explore AI-enhanced donor segmentation and simple analytics, such as identifying lapsed donors, recurring-giving opportunities, and high-engagement supporters.
3. Grants Administration & Partner Relations (Humanitarian Link)
   • Manage the full grants cycle for The Jerusalem Fund’s Humanitarian Link and related grant-making, including:
   • Intake and logging of applications from eligible non-governmental/non-profit organizations serving Palestinians
   • Preliminary eligibility screening in accordance with Fund criteria (e.g., NGO registration, program focus areas such as education, medical and economic development, community and cultural projects)
   • Preparing complete application packets and summaries for the Grants Committee’s quarterly review meetings
   • Drafting award letters, grant agreements, and communication to applicants (both successful and unsuccessful)
   • Coordinating disbursement of funds in collaboration with the Finance & Operations Manager
   • Use AI tools, where appropriate and under clear guidelines, to summarize lengthy grant applications and reports, draft initial versions of grant summaries or board memos, and extract key themes and impact stories—always with careful review and final editing by staff.
   • Track reporting requirements for all grantees, including interim and final reports, financial documentation, photos, and narrative descriptions of project impact, ensuring compliance with the Fund’s policies and deadlines.
   • Maintain accurate, up-to-date grant records and files (digital and physical) for auditing, board reporting, and storytelling purposes.
   • Serve as a primary point of contact for Palestinian partner organizations, answering questions about guidelines, timelines, and documentation, and helping to translate successful project outcomes into stories that can be shared with donors.
4. Donor Communications, Storytelling & Collaboration
   • In close collaboration with the Program & Communications Manager and the Executive Director, contribute to donor-facing content such as:
   • Segments of email newsletters highlighting grant-funded projects and donor impact
   • Campaign appeals and updates (e.g., Gaza emergency appeals, special initiatives)
   • Short case studies, project spotlights, and “thank-you stories” for donors and the wider community
   • Use generative AI tools responsibly and effectively as drafting partners for donor communications (e.g., first-pass drafts of newsletter blurbs, suggested subject lines, or social copy), then revise, fact-check, and contextualize to ensure accuracy, nuance, and an appropriate tone for Palestine-focused work.
   • Coordinate with the Program & Communications Manager on design and production of donor materials, including:
   • Printed postcards, letters, and appeal cards
   • Graphics or flyers related to giving campaigns and grant impact
   • Social media content that highlights humanitarian work and donor-supported projects
   • Help ensure that all donor communications are consistent with the Fund’s mission, values, and visual identity, and that they appropriately link donors’ contributions to tangible outcomes on the ground.
   • Stay attentive to conversations around AI ethics, surveillance, and digital repression as they relate to philanthropy and Palestine, and help the Fund communicate transparently about how we use digital and AI tools in a way that respects donors’ and partners’ privacy and dignity.
5. Reporting, Analytics & Compliance
   • Generate regular development and grants reports for the Executive Director, Board, and relevant committees, including:
   • Donation summaries by fund, campaign, and program
   • Trends in donor retention, recurring giving, and average gift size
   • Grants awarded by geography, sector, and program area
   • Experiment (within clear guidelines) with AI tools to visualize and summarize trends from Bloomerang and grant data—for instance, generating narrative summaries of quarterly giving, draft talking points for board reports, or simple charts/overviews that can be refined by staff.
   • Work with the Finance & Operations Manager to reconcile development data with accounting records, supporting accurate financial statements, Form 990 preparation, and audits.
   • Help ensure that all fundraising, donor stewardship, and grant-making activities are conducted in accordance with relevant laws and regulations for 501(c)(3) organizations, as well as internal policies, and that they reflect best practices in ethical fundraising, international grant-making, and responsible use of digital and AI tools.
6. Teamwork, Culture & Administration
   • Contribute to a professional, welcoming office environment, reflecting the Fund’s responsibility to donors, partners, and the public.
   • Supervise and mentor interns and/or volunteers assigned to grants and donor relations tasks (data entry, mailings, research, etc.), including helping them learn how to use AI tools thoughtfully and ethically in their work.
   • Provide reasonable cross-coverage for front-of-house, events, or administrative tasks during peak times or staff absences, as directed by the Executive Director.
   • Uphold all Board-approved policies, including expectations around in-person work, professional conduct, confidentiality of donor and partner information, and responsible AI use.

Required Qualifications

• • Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field (e.g., Nonprofit Management, Public Administration, International Development, Middle East/Palestine Studies, Business/Accounting, or related disciplines).
  • 2+ years of relevant experience in at least two of the following areas:
  • Donor relations or fundraising operations
  • Nonprofit grants administration (especially international grant-making)
  • Development operations, CRM/database management, or similar roles in a nonprofit setting
  • Demonstrated experience with gift processing and donor acknowledgements, including preparing IRS-compliant donation receipts/tax letters and reconciling donations with accounting records.
  • Strong proficiency with databases/CRMs (experience with Bloomerang is a strong plus; experience with other nonprofit CRMs and a demonstrated ability to learn new systems quickly is required).
  • Professional proficiency in Arabic (written and/or spoken)
  • Hands-on experience using generative AI tools (e.g., Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, NotebookLM) for research, drafting donor or grantee communications, summarizing documents, and workflow support—along with the ability to compare their strengths and use more than one model on the same task, under clear ethical and governance guidelines.
  • Excellent attention to detail and organizational skills, with the ability to manage multiple deadlines and complex workflows without losing sight of accuracy.
  • Strong written and verbal communication skills in English, particularly for donor correspondence and professional emails.
  • Demonstrated interest in or knowledge of Palestine and the broader region, and alignment with the Fund’s mission and values.
  • High level of integrity, discretion, and professionalism in handling sensitive donor and financial information.
  • Ability to work in-person in Washington, DC for 20 hours per week, on a consistent weekly schedule agreed with the Executive Director.

Preferred Experience, Skills & Competencies

• • Prior experience administering international grants to NGOs, including familiarity with due diligence, reporting requirements, and risk mitigation in a 501(c)(3) context.
  • Hands-on experience with Bloomerang (CRM and/or Giving Platform), or a similar nonprofit-focused CRM, including building reports and basic automation.
  • Familiarity with AI fluency frameworks (e.g., Anthropic’s 4D AI Fluency Framework) and interest in AI for nonprofits certifications or training.
  • Experience engaging with AI ethics, AI governance, and digital rights, especially as they intersect with philanthropy, humanitarian aid, surveillance, and war.
  • Experience working in a small, mission-driven nonprofit, think tank, humanitarian organization, or foundation.
  • Comfort collaborating on donor communications and basic design, including working with colleagues on newsletters, postcards, or simple digital media (e.g., Canva).
  • Familiarity with email marketing tools (e.g., Mailchimp) and basic CRM/contact management.

Work Schedule, Compensation & Growth

• • Schedule: Part-time, 20 hours per week, on-site in Washington, DC. Specific working days/times will be agreed upon with the Executive Director based on organizational needs.
  • Compensation: $30 per hour.
  • Growth Potential: Hours may increase based on the operational needs of The Jerusalem Fund, availability of the selected candidate, and approval of the Executive Committee. Based on performance during the first 90 days and institutional needs, there may be an opportunity to transition this role into a full-time position.

How to Apply

To apply, please send the following materials to skaymakci@thejerusalemfund.org with the subject line “Grants& Donor Relations Program Manager – [Your Name]”:

Cover letter explaining your interest in The Jerusalem Fund and how your experience aligns with this role; CV or résumé; 2–3 relevant work samples; Names and contact information for two to three professional references.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, and the position will remain open until filled.

Arabic and English