Chief Development Officer

Walnut Hill School for the Arts seeks a Chief Development Officer to join the senior leadership team starting on July 1, 2026.

The Chief Development Officer (CDO) serves as a key thought partner to the Head of School in strategically increasing philanthropic support to advance the School’s mission and vision for the future. As an important member of the senior leadership team, the CDO will work closely with the Board of Trustees, articulating a vision of philanthropy to current families, alumni, and current and future donors;

playing a critical role advancing the School’s reputation and most importantly, actively cultivating, soliciting, and closing transformational gifts.

Positionally, the CDO, Head of School, and Board of Trustees will execute a “pathway to eminence” that will result in Walnut Hill attracting substantial philanthropic support by positioning itself as an arts entity worthy of support from arts benefactors and major foundations in key metropolitan markets. This is a very rare position for an independent school to occupy; essentially behaving as much like a symphony or ballet company as it does a school, increasing the potential to secure transformational gifts.

The CDO will create and execute Walnut Hill’s overall fundraising and engagement strategies investing in deep partnerships with the Strategic Marketing and Enrollment Management teams. Collaboration with other areas of the School will be critical as well, including arts and academic departments, senior leadership, the business office, deans, faculty, staff, parent/guardians, and students.

Visit the Walnut Hill School for the Arts website for the full overview of this exciting opportunity.

• Engage with the Head of School in high-level strategic thinking to grow and optimize the School’s overall development efforts, as well as for key initiatives such as the launch of Walnut Hill’s strategic plan;
• Serve as a lead front-line fundraiser. Develop and manage a significant personal portfolio of highly-rated prospects and donors, including cultivation, solicitation, and maintaining accountability for revenue expectations; work toward achievement of annual success metrics (e.g., donor meetings, prospect identification/qualification, gift closure);
• Devise, implement, and manage effective and complex strategies to secure principal gifts (6-7+ figures) for capital and programmatic priorities, along with appropriate and timely cultivation and stewardship;
• Understand the lifecycle of each Walnut Hill constituent to curate a relevant, meaningful, and mission-inspiring set of touchpoints and experiences with the goal of proximal engagement and philanthropy;
• With Head of School and Board committee involvement, develop, test, and refine a compelling case for support and related messaging to position Walnut Hill as an organization deserving of transformative philanthropy;
• In collaboration with the Head of School, establish a rubric of metrics that determine the effectiveness of the School’s philanthropy programming; and
• Execute a data-driven approach to planning, reporting on, and measuring results, identify key opportunities for improvement, and address obstacles to fundraising performance.

• Balance travel and front-line work with staff oversight, ensuring a well-run office with effective cultivation and stewardship of prospects and donors;
• Supervise, coach, and provide vision to the department to build a strong, collaborative team that serves the high-level goals of the school;
• Meet regularly with staff, providing ongoing and constructive feedback and support, and identifying opportunities for professional growth; mentor and develop staff, adjusting and aligning job responsibilities and contracted work, ensuring alignment with the School’s strategic priorities; conduct annual evaluations and reviews per the School’s performance evaluation process; and
• Manage the budget, prioritizing all resources for a strategic ROI.

• Be visible in the school community, observing classes, attending assemblies, performances, art openings, and…