About this role
Director of Advancement & Mission POSITION DESCRIPTION | MARY IMMACULATE CATHOLIC SCHOOL INSTITUTIONAL CONTEXT Mary Immaculate Catholic School has served the families of Farmers Branch, Texas since 1959. The school operates as a ministry of Mary Immaculate Parish, within the Diocese of Dallas. The Catholic faith is not incidental to what happens here. The faith is the foundation. The school's guiding conviction is that wonder leads to knowing. At MIS, curiosity is the starting point of formation: intellectual, moral, and spiritual. The school's mission is to provide a Christ-centered learning environment that fosters wonder and excitement, igniting in each student a love for learning and a desire to grow in faith and character. The school's vision is to develop students who are prepared to lead, serve, and succeed in the 21st century, rooted in academic rigor, moral integrity, and a profound appreciation for the Catholic faith. Approximately 470 students from preschool through eighth grade are enrolled. The parish community that sustains the school numbers several thousand families, making Mary Immaculate one of the most active Catholic communities in North Texas. The advancement operation at MIS spans major gifts, annual giving, planned giving, two signature fundraising events, an active grant portfolio, and capital project strategy, all managed by a single full-time professional. The program has grown consistently year over year and most recently surpassed $2,000,000 in philanthropic revenue for the first time in the school's 66-year history. POSITION OVERVIEW The Director of Advancement & Mission is the senior advancement and institutional strategy officer at Mary Immaculate Catholic Church & School, responsible for philanthropic revenue, major donor relationships, capital project leadership, and grant development. The role sits within the institution's senior leadership team and carries direct accountability for the financial resources that make the school's mission possible. Mary Immaculate runs a single-person advancement operation. The Director sets the strategy, manages donor relationships, produces communications, leads events, and closes gifts. The work is varied, the pace is consistent, and the expectation is high. This is a role for someone who finds meaning in that kind of work, who takes ownership without being prompted and brings the same care to a thank-you letter as to a major gift conversation. Mary Immaculate Catholic Church & School | Farmers Branch, TX | mischool.org REPORTING STRUCTURE Reports to: Pastor, Father Alfonse Nazzaro CORE RESPONSIBILITIES Philanthropic Revenue & Major Gifts – Lead the institution's Annual Fund strategy, including goal-setting, segmentation, solicitation, and stewardship across all donor levels. North Texas Giving Day serves as the Annual Fund's primary giving initiative, and the Director owns full campaign architecture: constituent outreach, peer-to-peer engagement, grade-level giving competitions, and appeals that push beyond conventional approaches toward something genuinely memorable. – Manage a personal portfolio of major gift prospects and donors, executing moves management from identification through stewardship. – Cultivate and solicit planned giving commitments in partnership with the pastor and principal, maintaining the institution's Legacy Circle. – Build and manage a year-round corporate sponsorship strategy, consolidating event and institutional sponsorships into a single annual catalog. Signature Events – Serve as the institution's primary liaison and executive lead for the Heart of Gold Auction and Gala. Working alongside the volunteer event chair, the Director carries full operational and strategic accountability from concept through close: strategy development, venue contracting, sponsorship fulfillment, volunteer team management, vendor coordination, live program execution, and post-event reconciliation and review. – Serve as the institution's primary liaison and executive lead for the MIS Golf Classic. Working alongside the volunteer event team, the Director carries the same full accountability: course contracting, registration management, sponsorship fulfillment, volunteer coordination, day-of execution, and post-event reconciliation and review. Donor Stewardship & Communications – Maintain a consistent, personal cadence of stewardship for all major and mid-level donors, including written correspondence, phone outreach, campus visits, and recognition events. – Produce and oversee all advancement communications, including donor acknowledgment letters, case statements, campaign materials, and stewardship reports. – Partner with the Pastor and Principal on donor-facing correspondence, briefings, and cultivation events. – Manage the institution's Legacy Circle, including recognition, ongoing cultivation, and periodic communication. Capital Projects & Facilities Strategy – Serve as the institution's primary point of contact for architects, engineers, and general contractors on major capital improvement projects. – Align donor strategy, naming opportunities, and project scope to support capital priorities identified by senior leadership. – Manage project documentation, vendor relationships, and timeline accountability in coordination with the facilities team and Church Business Manager. – Provide leadership in the development and communication of capital campaign priorities to major donors and institutional stakeholders. Grant Development & Compliance – Identify, research, and pursue grant opportunities across Catholic, diocesan, private foundation, and federal funding channels. Mary Immaculate Catholic Church & School | Farmers Branch, TX | mischool.org – Lead all grant submissions from concept through application, including stakeholder coordination, narrative development, budget documentation, and compliance requirements. – Manage active grant relationships with program officers and ensure all reporting obligations are met on schedule. – Coordinate with diocesan contacts, school administration, and external partners on grant eligibility, project alignment, and application strategy. Advancement Systems & Data – Manage and maintain Blackbaud Raiser's Edge NXT as the institution's primary constituent relationship management system. – Build and maintain donor segmentation, prospect pipelines, action logging, and gift reporting across all funds and campaigns. – Produce a weekly advancement report for senior leadership covering progress on active fundraising campaigns, event status, grant activity, and capital projects, drawing on RENXT data to surface trends and support informed decision-making. – Ensure gift acknowledgment within 48 hours as a standing institutional standard. Institutional Leadership – Serve as an active member of the senior leadership team, contributing to strategic planning and institutional decision-making in service of the school's broader mission. – Represent the institution at diocesan, professional, and community functions. – Pursue ongoing professional development through conferences, workshops, and peer networks relevant to Catholic advancement and institutional leadership. KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS The Director is evaluated annually against the following measures: – Annual Fund revenue and donor retention rates, year over year – North Texas Giving Day performance against goal – Major gift portfolio size, movement through the moves management cycle, and dollars secured – Total institutional giving across all funds and campaigns – Signature event revenue against budgeted goal – Grant submissions and awards secured – Capital project milestones met on schedule and within scope – Donor acknowledgment turnaround and stewardship touchpoint frequency – RENXT discipline: constituent records, action logging, and pipeline accuracy – Proactive use of data and metrics from RENXT to drive institutional decision-making