Director of Philanthropy (Major Gifts)

DIRECTOR OF PHILANTHROPY (MAJOR GIFTS)

ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION

The Parthenon and Centennial Park have been essential parts of Nashville’s fabric for more than a century. Over 3 million people visit the Park and Parthenon annually, and as a nonprofit support organization working in partnership with Metro Parks, Centennial Park Conservancy is committed to our mission of preserving, enhancing, and sharing these Nashville treasures to serve current and future generations. The organization is responsible for a variety of initiatives focused on caring for the Park and maintaining its vibrancy. Centennial Park Conservancy has several areas of focus, including:

• Centennial Park Revitalization - a public and private partnership with Metro Parks to revitalize Nashville’s central park to serve our residents and visitors; achieved through capital improvements projects, the Centennial Park Beautification Fund, Sylvia Rapoport Future Fund, and Parthenon Preservation Fund
• The Parthenon - a full scale replica of the ancient Grecian monument that operates as an engaging museum, presenting humanities exhibitions and educational programming for over 300K visitors annually
• Musicians Corner - an outdoor music series attended by 100K people annually that presents free, diverse, and accessible live music for all
• Kidsville - an educational program that serves over 55K children (ages 2-12) annually and provides free activities in the Parthenon, and Metro Parks Community Centers across the city
• Nashville Earth Day - the city’s official event attended by 13K people to celebrate and protect our environment. The program also provides grants for 10+ environmental projects annually

ABOUT THE POSITION

Centennial Park Conservancy is 5 years into a 7-year strategic plan to significantly expand our support of the Park and Parthenon. We are hiring a Director of Philanthropy (Major Gifts) to work collaboratively with the VP of Development & Park Partnerships and President to lead the organization's major gifts program. Reporting to the VP of Development & Park Partnerships, the Director of Philanthropy (Major Gifts) is responsible for implementing Centennial Park Conservancy’s individual donor major gifts strategy, including donor identification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship.

The Director of Philanthropy (Major Gifts) serves as the fundraising professional responsible for meeting with donors to secure major gifts, legacy gifts, and capital project contributions, and is responsible for leading our individual donor fundraising activities. Since 2022, CPC has sunset a major fundraising Gala and launched two donor affinity groups: Centennial Circle and Leadership Circle. The Director of Philanthropy (Major Gifts) will oversee the growth of individual donor income from our Leadership Circle and Centennial Circle patrons to sustain and expand operational support of the Park, Parthenon, and CPC’s mission driven public programs. The position is based in Nashville, Tennessee. We are currently working in a hybrid remote and in-office schedule.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Director of Philanthropy (Major Gifts) will have the following primary responsibilities:

• Implement CPC’s comprehensive multi-year individual giving fundraising strategy focused on long-term growth and including generating income from major gifts, legacy giving, and capital projects contributions. This position will also oversee the creation of the legacy giving program strategy and materials in collaboration with the VP of Development and Marketing Department
• Make major donor asks and take donor meetings regularly to successfully secure contributions to CPC; the 2026 operating goal for this position is $825K.
• Create and implement a donor identification and engagement strategy to identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward major donors in an effort to grow our donor base, increase donor retention, and strengthen our relationships with donors
• Help the organization continue to transition away from an events-based fundraising strategy to a more personalized major gifts approach, and ensure existing donor retention while focusing on growing our base of supporters
• Collaborate with the VP of Development and Development Manager to create and implement an annual individual giving calendar for the organization, including donor engagement events and campaigns.
• Assist in the CPC membership program strategy that retains and grows our member base and revenue. The Development Manager at CPC implements and fulfills the membership program at $1K and below, while this position works hand in hand to determine portfolios designations and strategy.
• Assist with event planning and management of key donor engagement thank you events including Centennial Circle Dinner, the Patron Circle Reception, Donor & Member Appreciation Picnic, Gratitude Gathering, and other events as needed. The Director of Philanthropy is the primary planning contact for the Centennial Circle thank you dinner and Patron Circle Reception.
• Centennial Park is opening a new events pavilion this year and considering a 2027 cultivation event in the space, this position will be critical to that decision and implementation of the event.
• Maintain portfolio activity and key donor data in Salesforce, the organization’s CRM database, including ongoing communication on KPI progress.
• Work with the VP of Development to create, implement, and oversee a Board giving strategy as well as engage Board Members in fundraising.
• Serve as a member of the Development Committee and collaborate with volunteers on donor solicitations.
• Network with major donors to build a volunteer Patron Circle Subcommittee to assist with introductions to new patrons.
• Collaborate with Programming department to engage event attendees, generate donations at events, and help to convert event visitors into donors
• Collaborate with our Parthenon colleagues to engage visitors, generate donations at the museum, and help to convert visitors into donors
• Collaborate with CPC’s Marketing department on campaigns and donors communications
• Collaborate with the VP of Development, Director of Institutional Giving, and Corporate Partnerships Manager on the identification and engagement of potential corporate and foundation partners; assist in solicitation of foundation and corporate partnership asks as needed

QUALIFICATIONS

The ideal Director of Philanthropy will possess most of the following qualifications:

• An undergraduate and/or graduate degree in business, non-profit management, or a related field
• A minimum of 5+ years experience with a proven fundraising track record in the non-profit sector, including building and implementing an individual giving strategy that includes major gifts (six figures contributions) and a capital campaign
• Strategic and creative thinker, proactive, self-motivated, results-oriented, and highly collaborative
• Strong oral and written communication skills with an ability to manage positive relationships with internal and external stakeholders
• Exceptional accuracy and attention to detail
• Ability to prioritize, manage, and delegate multiple projects and campaigns simultaneously, taking initiative and remaining flexible to ensure objectives are met in a timely manner
• Ability to exercise independent judgment and maintain a self-motivated and self-directed schedule
• Strong collaborative skills who works collectively with others to achieve individual and mutual goals
• Committed to maintaining the integrity of confidential donor information and communications
• Professional, courteous, cooperative, and positive in interactions with colleagues, partners, stakeholders, and others
• Knowledge of CRM systems management, Salesforce NPC, and wealth screening software is a plus
• Flexibility to support the mission where needed in a small nonprofit environment
• Ability to work organization and Parthenon events as needed
• Strong knowledge of computers, including Apple programs, Microsoft Office, and Google Drive
• Nonprofit green space, education, and arts industry experience a plus

REPORTS TO: Vice President of Development & Park Partnerships

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

• Compensation commensurate with experience
• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision benefits
• Retirement plan with 3% company match
• Work Schedule: We are currently working in a hybrid remote and in-office schedule. This position is required to be in the office a few days a week and meet with donors weekly. When they are not in office or at donor meetings, they have the flexibility to work from home. Full time employees are expected to work 40 hours per week plus occasional evening and weekend event support time as well.
• Time off and holiday: For 2026, Centennial Park Conservancy is providing full-time staff with 44 paid days off. This includes the following: 15 vacation days (to be prorated based on start date); 12 Metro Nashville Holidays; 7 Summer Fridays; 3 Gratitude Week days; and 7 Holiday Break days where we are "semi-closed" during the last two weeks of the year, and employees are only required to work for any year-end time-sensitive tasks.

LEARN MORE ABOUT CENTENNIAL PARK CONSERVANCY

conservancyonline.com

Job Type: Full-time

Benefits:

• 401(k) matching
• Dental insurance
• Health insurance
• Paid time off
• Parental leave
• Professional development assistance
• Retirement plan
• Vision insurance

Experience:

• Fundraising: 5 years (Preferred)

Ability to Relocate:

• Nashville, TN 37203: Relocate before starting work (Required)

Work Location: Hybrid remote in Nashville, TN 37203