Director of Strategic Partnerships

Remote - Chicago, IL

Who We Are: The Computer Science Teacher's Association (CSTA)  

Hello, World! CSTA is a non-profit membership organization that supports and promotes the teaching of computer science, providing opportunities for K–12 teachers and their students to better understand computer science and to more successfully prepare themselves to teach and learn. We are fully remote with engaged teammates spread from California to Massachusetts and we blend our collective experience gained from our past roles in non-profits, K-12 schools, higher education, and hospitality to create high-quality teaching and learning experiences for teachers worldwide

Who We Are Looking For: A Dynamic,Tenacious Relationship Builder 

CSTA is a vibrant organization of professionals supporting Computer Science education. Our membership consists of more than 20,000 members from more than 145 countries. At CSTA, we believe in the power of collaboration and the limitless potential of educators. With the generous contributions of our partners, we are propelling our vision forward, striving to create an unparalleled environment that empowers and uplifts K–12 educators..

A strong collaborator, storyteller, and relationship builder, you will bring deep fundraising knowledge and experience to the team. You will steward current major partners and secure commitments from new partners to deepen the impact of their philanthropic contributions to CSTA’s mission and programs.

How You’ll Contribute: Essential Duties and Responsibilities 

In this role, you will lead the fundraising and partnerships team for CSTA. You will be responsible for identifying fundraising opportunities and securing the resources necessary to meet the organization’s fundraising goals, growing individual, corporate, and private philanthropy from 2.5MM to 7MM annually by FY2027. As Director of Strategic Partnerships, you will sits on the Leadership Team of the organization.

In your typical day-to-day, you will:

Lead and implement a comprehensive fundraising plan that aligns with the organization's mission and goals (65% time) 

  • Provide strategic leadership to develop a multi-faceted, comprehensive approach to the organization’s fundraising that is aligned with its current and emerging programmatic priorities
  • Develop and implement a fundraising plan that includes clear goals, metrics, and timelines for achieving fundraising targets
  • Articulate programmatic priorities for the development team based on organizational strategy and needs
  • Facilitate long-term planning to ensure further diversification of the organization’s funding base
  • Evaluate and refine fundraising processes and strategies to ensure effectiveness and efficiency
  • Engage directly in funder prospecting, pitching, and management of key accounts. 
  • Partner with the ED on major development activities

Oversee people and functions (20% time)

  • Direct the ongoing work of the fundraising and partnerships team, including a fundraising manager, and the philanthropy and grants coordinator.
  • Build and manage a high-performing development team that is aligned with the organization’s mission, values and strategic priorities
  • Provide leadership and mentorship to development staff to build their fundraising capacity to and support the organization’s work
  • Foster a culture of collaboration within the development team
  • Develop and implement performance metrics and evaluation tools to ensure that fundraising targets and other organizational goals are met
  • Ensure the ongoing integration of Salesforce to best maintain information about funders and prospects, and share that across the development team

Ensure administrative alignment and execution (15% time)

  • Establish, monitor, and administer budget and expenses within budget requirements, including planning and managing budget line items for specific outcomes
  • Participate in strategic planning and processes with leadership across the organization
  • Other duties, as assigned

What You Bring to the Table: Experience & Qualifications 

As our ideal candidate, you are a strong networker and self-starter who is skilled in closing deals, enjoys multi-tasking, cheerfully excels under pressure, and works independently. You are extremely detail-oriented, possess exceptional writing skills, and are tech-savvy.

You will be successful in this role if you have:

  • Passion for addressing issues of equity in CS education
  • 7+ years of development, fundraising, and grant writing experience 
  • 2+ years of supervisory and team development experience
  • Demonstrated success in securing $1MM+ and multi-year contributions for non-profit organizations (required)
  • Experience building long-term relationships with potential donors and other partners
  • Strong project management, planning, and organizational skills, plus the ability to set and adhere to deadlines and work in a fast-paced environment
  • Excellent judgment, strong emotional intelligence, and a high level of motivation to meet revenue targets
  • Proficiency in working with Microsoft Office and Google Docs 

In addition, all candidates:

  • Must be a U.S. Citizen or authorized to work in the U.S.
  • Must pass a pre-employment background check
  • Must be able to travel up to 15% time within the U.S. and occasionally work outside normal business hours. Travel costs are covered by CSTA.

If you meet the majority of the skills and experience reflected in this job description, we strongly encourage you to apply! 

What We Offer 

As a nonprofit, we strive to be market competitive with similarly sized organizations, and internally fair in our pay practices. The hiring salary range for this role is $125,000 - $140,000. This represents the target offer range given the scope and experience expectations for this role.  

In hiring, we are generally open to candidates in a varying range of experiences and levels, and recognize that as a candidate you may be less experienced or more senior than this job description as posted. If that's the case, an updated salary range will be shared with you if you move forward in our hiring process.

CSTA is proud to provide a flexible, engaging working environment with a great team. Other perks and benefits include:  

  • Flexible schedules with independent workday Fridays
  • Paid time off: three weeks vacation annually, ten days sick leave, ten holidays, one-week office closure for summer break, and one-week office closure at the end of December
  • Medical, dental and vision premiums paid at 100% for FT positions and subsidized dependent premiums
  • Paid parental leave (8-12 weeks)
  • Technology and work from home subsidy consistent with our bring-your-own-device environment
  • Option to participate in retirement savings plan with generous employer match after six months of employment

CSTA Leads Through Our Values

CSTA is committed to disrupting systemic inequities and developing inclusive teaching and learning practices. This extends to our internal team and we regularly seek opportunities to expand our knowledge and better our practices to foster internal equity and a sense of belonging within our team. Read about our values here

CSTA is honored to be an equal opportunity workplace. We realize that by bringing together a team rich in diverse backgrounds, thoughts and experiences, our people, organization, and our members flourish. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities regardless of race, color, national origin, religion, creed, genetic information, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation or gender identity), age, marital status, disability, military or veteran status; or any other protected classifications or characteristics under applicable local laws.

What to Expect From Us 

During the interview stage, you can expect:

  • Step 1: An initial “phone” screen (45 minutes). If there’s a good mutual fit for the role, you’ll be invited to next steps in our process. 
  • Step 2: We’ll schedule an interview loop with the team members you will work most closely with, 3-4 hours total. 
  • Step 3: Following these interviews, we’ll ask you to consider a scenario to see how you might respond to a typical situation encountered in this role. You can expect to spend 60-90 minutes reflecting & writing your thoughts and approach. We’ll schedule a 30-minute follow-up for you to share your approach, and answer any outstanding questions you have about the role. 

All interviews will be remote via Zoom or Google Meet; we are happy to make accommodations you might need to feel set up for success in our process.