Chief Development Officer

Chief Development Officer

• Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy
• May 24, 2024
• Washington, DC

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A national public charity based in Washington, D.C., the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy is dedicated to building a stronger, more equitable America through literacy. Since the Foundation’s establishment in 1989 by First Lady Barbara Bush, it has supported evidence-based family literacy programs in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

The Barbara Bush Foundation is the nation's leading advocate in breaking the multigenerational cycle of low literacy and improving the quality of life for families. Recognizing that this multigenerational issue has been historically under-resourced and under-researched, the Foundation believes that investing in literacy will positively impact economic, health, and social outcomes, transforming families, historically marginalized communities, and our nation as a whole.

The Foundation helps families and communities nationwide unlock potential through literacy, with a focus on :

The Foundation is brimming with energy under the visionary leadership of President Andrew Roberts, who helped lead the Foundation’s transition from a grantmaker to an implementing organization in his previous role as Chief Operating Officer, and has worked to build a mission-forward profile for the organization since he stepped into his current leadership role in 2023.

The Foundation is committed to building out a best-practices development program and fundraising team on par with the overall excellence of the organization. Amid this environment of forward-looking investment and expansion, the Foundation is seeking a seasoned, entrepreneurial fundraising leader to propel its philanthropic future in a period of rapid growth. Reporting directly to the President and serving on the executive leadership team, the Chief Development Officer (CDO) will be responsible for creating and implementing the Foundation’s fundraising strategy and leading a major-gifts-focused, comprehensive development program. They will be a key visioning and thought partner to the President for fundraising and organization-wide strategy, also serving as proxy for the President or other senior Foundation leaders when necessary.

The CDO will be an enthusiastic ambassador for the Foundation and will foster catalytic philanthropic growth, developing and deepening critical engagements with partners and driving broader awareness and philanthropic support for the organization. The CDO will lead the Development team’s efforts to implement a comprehensive development program in order to significantly grow the Foundation’s philanthropic revenue from a broad base of supporters, including individuals, corporations, foundations, government entities, and community organizations. The CDO will be empowered to evaluate and enhance the functional and / or organizational alignment of the current Development team with the understanding that additional team capacity will be needed going forward.

The CDO will join the Foundation during a critical moment in its fundraising transformation – a yearlong celebration honoring Barbara Bush’s 100th birthday (June 8, 2025). Kicking off in fall 2024 and running through the end of 2025, the Centennial initiative presents a unique opportunity to reenergize and reimagine the Foundation’s fundraising strategy to position it for decades of continued impact.

The successful candidate will have demonstrated success in implementing, growing, and managing a high-performing development program, as well as a proven ability to partner with organizational leadership. They will have experience in successful solicitation strategies for high-capacity individual, corporate, and foundation donors, and working with partners to support a comprehensive, multi-phased development effort.

While the Foundation will consider a broad range of backgrounds, the ideal candidate will have the following qualifications / experience :

The Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy has retained the DSG Fundraising & Advancement Practice of the Diversified Search Group to assist in this confidential search process. Inquiries, nominations, and applications (current resumes and cover letters) may be submitted via the following link or directed to the leader of the search team :

Gerard F. Cattie, Jr.

Managing Director and DSG Fundraising & Advancement Practice Leader

Diversified Search Group

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