Director, Individual Giving, Major Gifts | Team

Director, Individual Giving, Major Gifts | Advancement Team

Good Reason Houston to ensure that every child, in every neighborhood of Houston, has access to a world‑class public education and the opportunity to thrive in the Houston of tomorrow. From a child’s first day of Pre‑K to their first day on the job, we work to make sure every student is prepared for success in school, career, and life.

Anchored in a cradle‑to‑career vision, Good Reason Houston is driven by a bold North Star Goal: to double the rate of public school graduates earning a living wage by 2040, positioning economic mobility as the ultimate measure of student success. Achieving this goal requires collaboration across sectors, and Good Reason Houston serves as Houston’s regional education backbone, uniting public school systems, higher education institutions, employers, and civic leaders around a shared vision for student success.

Good Reason Houston builds awareness of, advocates for, and advises school systems on measures aimed to improve the quality of education available to all. Today the organization partners with 25 public school systems that collectively serve 700,000 students across 900 public schools in the Houston region. We seek to cultivate a shared regional vision for educational quality, to build the capacity for change required within districts and the greater Houston community, and to foster collective ownership to support student‑level results for kids across our city.

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Good Reason Houston is seeking a strategic and highly motivated Director, Individual Giving, Major Gifts to serve as a key frontline fundraiser on our growing Advancement team. This role is essential to advancing our philanthropic strategy, with a focus on driving revenue, expanding our individual giving portfolio, and deepening engagement across major gift donors. Reporting directly to the Chief Advancement Officer (CAO), this individual will play a critical role in building and managing a portfolio of major donors and prospects with the capacity to make significant philanthropic investments in support of our mission: ensuring that every child, in every Houston public school, is prepared for the world they will step into.

This position requires both the art and science of fundraising; combining data‑informed strategy with genuine curiosity, active listening, and consistent communication to build lasting trust with high‑capacity donors. The Director will serve as a partner and thought leader to the CAO and work cross‑functionally with internal and external stakeholders to drive forward our most important fundraising priorities. In this role, you’ll build and grow a dynamic portfolio of individual donors, focusing on cultivating meaningful relationships that lead to major philanthropic investments.

You’ll design personalized engagement and stewardship strategies that connect donors to Good Reason Houston’s mission, programs, and impact. You’ll lead efforts to increase donor participation through one‑on‑one outreach, custom giving opportunities, and storytelling that inspires long‑term commitment.

Donor Engagement (35%)

• Relationship Building:
  Serve as the primary relationship manager for donors and prospects, building trust and long‑term investment through thoughtful questions, active listening, and consistent follow‑through.
• Internal
  
  Collaboration:
  
  Partner with the CEO, CAO, and board members to engage donors through meetings, events, and briefings.
• Experience Design:
  Lead the design and execution of personalized donor experiences that deepen engagement and drive giving.
• Gift Closure:
  Personally solicit and close five‑ and six‑figure gifts, managing the process from proposal to acknowledgment.
• Donor Insights:
  Uncover donor motivations and interests through intentional conversations that align individual passions with Good Reason Houston’s mission and impact.
• Donor Pipeline:
  Build and maintain a portfolio of approximately 75 qualified prospects with the capacity to give $100,000 or more.
• Moves Management:
  Implement strategic moves to advance relationships and…