AuSM enhances the lives of individuals and families affected by Autism Spectrum Disorder. Founded in 1971, AuSM serves Minnesotans, throughout their lives, with a fundamental commitment to advocacy, education, support, collaboration, and community building.

The Development Coordinator reports to the Advancement Director and is responsible for serving as an administrative assistant and providing project management support. This essential role will organize development activities and ensure that key stakeholders are continuously engaged, nurtured, and, when the time is right, prompted to support the organization. The Development Coordinator will initially focus on supporting membership, individual giving, major gifts, workplace giving, and institutional fundraising. With time, the role may expand to include alumni giving, legacy giving, and more, with opportunities for advancement. The Development Coordinator leverages project management and organizational skills to support fundraising communications, marketing, grant writing, and database management. The Development Coordinator is part of the Advancement Department (fundraising, events, and communications) and works closely with programs, operations, executive leadership, and external partners. You will play a critical role in supporting the sustainability of Minnesota’s First Autism Resourceä.

Responsibilities

 

Essential Functions:

• Executive Assistance:
• Support the Executive Director and Advancement Director by:
• Providing administrative support
• Scheduling meetings
• Receiving, sorting, and responding to emails on behalf of others
• Note-taking
• Data entry
• Scanning, printing, and preparing documents
• Fielding phone calls
• Invoicing vendors and customers
• Project Management: Organize and monitor fundraising initiatives and campaigns, with special attention to steps the Advancement Director and Executive Director can take to engage, nurture, and motivate donors.
• Database Management: Maintain an updated institutional giving database (Salesforce) on funders, grants, deadlines, contracts, and contacts.
• Scheduling: Coordinate meetings, presentations, and other engagement opportunities for institutional partners and major donors.
• Grant Prospecting: Prospect potential opportunities for support from corporate donors and institutional funders and assess their suitability for partnership with the organization. 
• Opportunity Research: Review and prepare requests for applications, gathering the necessary information to build a strong case for support and partnership.
• Support Grant Writing: Edit grant proposals and ensure adherence to proposal submission deadlines, grant deliverables, and reporting requirements. 
• Reporting: Contribute to the preparation of ongoing grant reports for internal and external stakeholders, and ensure all reports are submitted on time.
• Database Management: Maintain stakeholder data, campaigns, and opportunities in Salesforce.

 

Marginal Functions:

• Campaign Planning: Develop and implement detailed project management plans, goals, budgets, and reports. 
• Support Messaging: Craft effective social media messaging that leverages relatability, storytelling, unique value propositions, and compelling calls to action to share the impact of the organization’s work and motivate donors.
• Gather Testimonials: Gather and utilize stories, quotes, photos, and information from staff, partners, volunteers, and program participants to support communications and outreach.
• Collaboration: Collaborate with marketing and communications team members to create stewardship materials such as impact reports and fact sheets. 
• Support Evaluation: Partner with program teams to gather program evaluation data and program updates.
• Event Support: Provide support for other departments in the execution of events hosted by the organization. 
• Data-Driven Reporting: Monitor and report on campaign performance using analytics tools to assess effectiveness and inform future strategies.
• Continuous Improvement: Analyze campaigns to identify opportunities for improvement.
• Other duties as assigned.

 

Required Skills

• Education: High school diploma or GED equivalent required.
• Professional Experience: At least 3 years of prior experience in development or related functions at nonprofit organizations.
• Achievement: Demonstrated success in institutional and corporate fundraising.
• Computer Skills: Excellent Mac computer skills, including Microsoft applications (Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint), AND experience with web-based fundraising tools (WordPress, Give Butter, MailChimp), customer relationship management databases (Salesforce), and project management software (Asana).
• Collaboration: Demonstrated success working independently and collaboratively.
• Accessibility: Knowledge of accessibility best practices for digital communications.
• Fraud and Waste Prevention: Candidate must not be included in the List of Excluded Individuals/Entities (LEIE) or the Minnesota Excluded Providers List.
• Compliance: Adhere to data privacy and protection laws such as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
• Clear Background Screening: Upon receiving an offer for this position, the candidate will undergo a criminal background check because during their employment, they may access financial data or personally identifiable health information and may interact with vulnerable individuals.

 

Preferred Skills

• Education: A bachelor’s degree or comparable experience is strongly preferred.
• Shared Values: Neurodiversity-affirming mindset and values, including a commitment to accessibility, diversity, equity, inclusion, and disability justice.
• Nonprofit Experience: Experience working in the nonprofit sector, community-based organizations, or autism organizations.
• Managing Complexity: Demonstrated organizational skills, including attention to detail, project planning, time management, and analysis to organize and manage multiple priorities and projects.
• Cultural Humility: Demonstrated good judgment and cultural competence to support communication with a diverse range of individuals.
• Communication Skills: Strong written and/or verbal skills for communicating with internal and external stakeholders.
• Personal Connection to Autism: While not required, lived experience with autism spectrum disorder, neurodivergence, or disability is highly valued.

 

Position Details

• Full-time, exempt
• St. Paul, MN - Hybrid position with remote work and two in-person days per week
• Flexible schedule with occasional evenings and weekends
• Comprehensive benefits include:
• Health, dental, and vision insurance options
• Optional health savings account (HSA), or flexible spending accounts (FSA) for health or childcare costs
• Basic term life insurance
• Short- and Long-term disability insurance
• 401 (k) retirement plan
• Up to 35 days off per year (15 vacation days, 6 sick days, 12 holidays, and 2 personal days)
• Opportunities for advancement
• Inclusive and accessible work environment

About the Autism Society of Minnesota

Established in 1971, the Autism Society of Minnesota (AuSM) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to create connections, empowering everyone in the Autism community with the resources needed to live fully. AuSM seeks to enhance the lives of all who are a part of the Minnesota autism community, with a fundamental commitment to advocacy, education, support, collaboration, and community building.

 

At AuSM, equity and inclusion are central to our mission. Bringing diverse perspectives together supports strategic creativity for meeting challenges and focusing on growth. We strive to develop a workplace that reflects the communities we serve – in age, gender identity, race, sexual orientation, physical ability, neurodiversity, and ethnicity. We value our team members and want everyone to feel confident in bringing their full, authentic selves to work.

 

AuSM employs many people with disabilities and understands that qualified applicants may require reasonable accommodations to be successful. If you have a disability that requires accommodation for the interview process, please request accommodations by contacting us at [email protected].