Development Associate

Who we are:

Founded by a group of dedicated individuals in 1997, Detention Watch Network (DWN) is a national coalition building power through collective advocacy, grassroots organizing, and strategic communications to abolish immigration detention in the United States. DWN is staffed by a small and growing team, committed to a vision of a world where every individual lives and moves freely and a society in which racial equity is the norm and immigration is not criminalized.

Recent Accomplishments:

• Secured over 100 Members of Congress to call for cuts in federal funding for detention and deportation through the #DefundHate campaign, and blocked 5 billion extra dollars in enforcement funding in Fiscal Year 2019;
• DWN hosted its 12^th National Member Conference in spring 2018 in Denver, CO with 200 people in attendance;
• In collaboration with members, prevented the opening of new detention facilities in the Midwest;
• Sub-granted over $50,000 to grassroots members working to end detention locally.

Position Summary:

The Development Associate will play a critical role in ensuring DWN’s sustainability. DWN is spending the coming year building out our finance and fundraising functions given DWN’s growth trajectory. This is a new position and will play a key role in operationalizing systems for grants management, funder tracking, processing acknowledgment letters, and expanding donor engagement. The Development Associate will draft materials; manage grants; support fundraising events; and conduct research, cultivation, outreach, and stewardship of gifts from foundations, partners, and individual donors.

This position reports to DWN’s Associate Director. Some travel required.

The Development Associate will work from DWN’s DC office if based in the DMV area, or can work remotely if based in another city.

Detention Watch Network is committed to the recruitment and retention of staff that is reflective of the communities we work with. We strongly encourage applications from Black people, Indigenous people, people of color, immigrants, women, people with disabilities, members of the LGBTQ community, and other underrepresented and historically marginalized groups.  

What you’ll do:

Grants Management:

• Draft grants and reports to foundations, gather and update information needed for grant proposals
• Track and manage grant deliverables, including interim and final reports, working with the Associate Director and program staff to develop narrative for funder reports.
• Respond to funder requests as needed

Individual Donor Engagement and Development:

• Develop individual cultivation plans, identify donor’s motivations and values and how they connect with the organization
• Lead strategy and campaign development for online and direct mail fundraising efforts associated with specific DWN campaigns
• Craft and execute appeals (online and via mail) plans throughout the year, including at year-end
• Develop and implement strategies to grow DWN’s monthly sustainer program
• Draft other fundraising materials, including DWN’s annual report, fundraising webpage language, email copy, and social media posts, in English and Spanish
• Coordinate gift acknowledgment process in a timely and organized manner
• Support with fundraising events (1-2 per year)

Development Administration:

• Work closely with the Associate Director in planning and executing DWN’s annual fundraising plans
• Play a key role in establishing new grants and donor management systems and processes for DWN
• Support DWN translation and interpretation needs
• Play an active role in DWN’s language justice cohort
• Regularly update donor database and manage reporting and tracking tools to inform fundraising strategies and tactics, including running regular reports on donations
• Conduct research around new or emerging fundraising strategies
• Actively participate in DWN staff meetings, retreats, and regular check-ins with all programmatic teams to ensure accurate reporting and identify opportunities for staff engagement in fundraising

You’ll thrive in this role if this sounds like you:

*While no candidate will possess every quality, the successful candidate will possess many of the following qualifications and attributes. Even if you aren’t sure but are excited about the position, we encourage you to apply!*

• Demonstrated commitment to DWN’s values
• Excellent research, writing, and editing skills
• At least 2-3 years of development and fundraising experience
• Fluent in Spanish, with ability to interpret and translate
• Strong project management and time management skills
• Attentive to detail, with the ability to prioritize tasks and responsibilities
• Collaborative team player, enjoys working with teams and coalitions
• Willingness to be flexible and adaptable to working with a variety of stakeholders and types of projects

We’re hoping you bring 1-2 (or more) of these bonus skills:

• Experience establishing new systems at a nonprofit organization
• Experience working on immigrant rights and/or racial justice issues
• Event management experience
• Experience with NeonCRM or similar database software

Why work for DWN?

• Paid Time Off: Staff are eligible for 15 vacation days their first year of employment; 20 vacation days during years two through seven; and 25 vacation days after eight years of employment; plus we are closed between December 25 and January 1.

• Commitment to our staff: DWN invests in staff growth and professional development opportunities and is committed to providing regular feedback and opportunities for advancement.
• Crystal clear focus: Our team gets to work with dedicated and growing membership committed to the abolition of immigration detention.
• Wellness Fund: We know that this work can be physically and emotionally taxing, so DWN offers a wellness fund to all staff: a stipend of $500 per year to go towards personal health and self-care (yoga classes, therapy co-pays, massages, workout gear—whatever works for you!)  
• Our team is awesome: You’ll be working with a group of smart, dedicated, and caring people who know how to have fun while getting a lot done in a low-ego environment!
• Added perks: we offer generous benefits and salaries, a monthly cell phone stipend to all staff, flexible work from home options, annual 3% Cost of Living Adjustments (COLAs), plus staff are entitled to a sabbatical after eight years on staff.

To Apply:

Email your resume, cover letter, and writing sample to jobs@detentionwatchnetwork.org. 

Detention Watch Network, a project of Tides Center, is an “at-will” and equal opportunity employer. Applicants and employees shall not be discriminated against because of race, religion, sex, national origin, ethnicity, age, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation, gender (including pregnancy and gender expression) identity, marital status, veteran status, medical condition, or any other protected classification.

Reasonable accommodation will be made so that qualified disabled applicants may participate in the application process. Please advise in writing of special needs at the time of application. While performing the responsibilities of the job, reasonable accommodations may be made to enable people with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the job.