Director of Grant Strategy and Development

Category : : Administrators

Subscribe : :

Department : : Grants and Alternative Funding

Locations : : Des Plaines, IL

Posted : : Oct 31, 2025

Closes : : Nov 27, 2025 - 11 : 59 PM EST

Type : : Administrators

Salary Type : : Annually

Salary Range : : $95,000.00 - $115,000.00

Position ID : : 194350

About Oakton College :

Educate. Empower. Transform

At Oakton College, we know education changes lives - and that starts with the people who make it happen. For more than 50 years, we've built a welcoming and inclusive community where students from all backgrounds and experiences thrive.

We're looking for passionate educators, professionals and leaders to join our team. Whether in the classroom, student support, or behind the scenes, your talents and expertise will make a difference and shape the future.

We provide dynamic learning environments that empower students and employees alike with campuses in Des Plaines and Skokie and a Health Careers Education Center in Evanston.

As a proud institution accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, Oakton is more than a college - it's a place where innovation, equity and lifelong learning drive everything we do. We value diverse perspectives and embrace new ideas and are dedicated to fostering an inclusive and student-centered culture.

Job Description :

Basic Function and Responsibility :

The Director of Grant Strategy and Development at Oakton College is responsible for overseeing the strategic and operational aspects of the college's publicly-funded grant activities. This includes researching funding opportunities and identifying those that are mission and programmatically aligned, overseeing the grant proposal process, ensuring compliance with grantor and institutional requirements, and management and administration of grant-funded projects through close-out. The Director will provide analyses to inform the college's overall grant strategy and collaborate with a broad range of college and external partners to develop proposals and execute on grant requirements and reporting. The Director will lead and supervise the Grants Office and work as a strategic partner to the Educational Foundation's grants function for private funders - sharing best practices, boilerplate narrative, and project descriptions to maximize funding opportunities for Oakton.

Characteristic Duties and Responsibilities :

• Oversee the preparation and submission of all grant proposals seeking funding from external public agencies and organizations. Ensure final applications are completed according to required formats, including proposal writing and submission to funding agencies.
• Conduct research and disseminate information on grant opportunities. Work closely with the AVP for Institutional Effectiveness and Strategic Planning as well as President's Council to analyze potential grant opportunities, assessing their alignment with the college's strategic goals and determining their feasibility and appropriateness.
• Liaise with college personnel involved in grant-funded programs to assist in operational planning and outline fund utilization. Work in cooperation with the Oakton Educational Foundation on joint funding activities.
• Serve as the primary contact with state and federal agency personnel for matters related to grant proposal development, budget negotiations, and grant implementations.
• Establish and implement operational goals for the Grants Office.
• Maintain comprehensive records of all grants, overseeing all administrative paperwork related to grant-funded programs. Ensure adherence to federal and state grant regulations by collaborating with internal college offices to implement effective internal controls for grants. Address and resolve operational and programmatic issues in grant projects, ensuring compliance with grant requirements, including necessary evaluations and reporting.
• Work closely with the Grants Finance Specialist to ensure accurate financial management of grant funds, including budget development with project directors and coordination with the accounting department to monitor expenditures and ensure fiscal compliance.
• Direct, assign, and evaluate the activities and personnel of the Grants Office. Supervise the use of external consultants for roles such as proposal writing, project evaluation, and other relevant duties.
• Develop and manage the budget for the Grants Office.
• Perform other job-related duties as assigned.

Supervision Received :

Administrative supervision is provided by the Assistant Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness and Strategic Planning.

Supervision Exercised :

Supervision is exercised over the applicable staff members within the Grants Office.

Requirements :

Qualifications and Working Conditions :

Physical Demands :

Light lifting up to 10 lbs. and light carrying up to 10 lbs. Ability to reach above shoulder. Periods of time spent sitting, standing, walking, kneeling, bending, and stooping. Mobility to move from building to building on-campus. Work is performed in a general office environment and sedentary in nature. Little or no exposure to adverse working conditions.

Additional Information :

Salary Range : $95,000-$115,000

A comprehensive benefit package is available which includes medical, vision, and dental insurance; flexible spending; term life insurance; tuition waivers and reimbursement; retirement; paid holidays; sick days.

Appointment to a Administrator position is contingent upon approval by the College's Board of Trustees

For information regarding employment eligibility, please visit our employment at Oakton web page .

Equal Opportunity Employer

Application Instructions :

To become an applicant, interested individuals must complete the online application linked from the posting found on the Oakton website. Electronic copies of a cover letter, resume / cv, list of three (3) references with contact information and transcripts must be submitted by the applicant via uploading to the Oakton employment website. Please indicate the position code (DGS-25) on the cover letter. Uploaded documents need to be under 2 MB in size and in either .doc, .txt, or .pdf format. A total of 8 separate documents may be uploaded to an application file that has been successfully submitted to the College.

TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED :

An UNOFFICIAL copy of transcripts must be submitted at the time of application by the applicant.

Official transcripts or placement / credential files sent by postal mail should be sent to :

Oakton College

Director of Grant Strategy and Development (DGS-25)

c / o Human Resources Department

1600 East Golf Road

Des Plaines, IL 60016

Interviewees will be reimbursed for expenses associated with travel in excess of 50 miles to the interviews.

Oakton College conducts background checks on all job candidates upon acceptance of a contingent offer of employment. Convictions are not a bar to employment. Background checks will be performed in compliance with state and federal law and in accordance with the Illinois Department of Human Rights Conviction Record Protection Act of March 2021.

Posted positions may be removed from the Oakton website without notice when it is determined that no additional applicants are required.

Oakton College does not utilize E-Verify for employment eligibility verification.