Grants Manager

The Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education seeks a passionate and energetic Grants Manager to join our small but growing team to assist in our fundraising efforts. This is a full-time salaried position that reports to the Director of Development and starts immediately.

To Apply

Please send a resume and cover letter to Caroline Linz, Director of Development, at caroline@schuylkillcenter.org.

Overview

The Schuylkill Center seeks an experienced and highly motivated candidate to provide grant writing support and foundation and corporate relations fundraising assistance to forward its mission and bring the Center’s fundraising efforts to the next level. The successful candidate will be an experienced grant writer and manager who is a compelling storyteller and a confident verbal and written communicator. This individual will work with the Director of Development and Executive Director to understand the fundraising goals of the Center and develop strategies to attain general operating, programmatic and special project support.

The Grants Manager is responsible for identifying funding opportunities, developing grant proposals, and managing the grant application process. This role involves working closely with various departments to gather information, ensure compliance with grant requirements, and track the status of proposals and awarded grants. The ideal candidate will possess strong writing and organizational skills, a keen eye for detail, and a deep understanding of grant processes and funding sources.

The candidate should be a strategic thinker with at least five (5) years of fundraising experience and demonstrated results in grant writing and management. The candidate should also have a strong work ethic, be self-motivated, organized and detail-oriented and approach their work with dedication to the Center’s mission.

Duties and Responsibilities

1. Grant Research and Identification:

• Research and identify potential funding sources, including government grants, private foundations, and corporate giving programs.
• Evaluate funding opportunities to determine their alignment with organizational goals and priorities.
• Conduct proactive and reactive research to identify foundation and corporate funding opportunities and leverage new opportunities and trends in environmental education, early childhood education, land stewardship, environmental art, and wildlife rehabilitation philanthropy to secure new sources of funds for the Center.
• Be an initial point of contact between prospects and the Center by managing introductory contact with foundations and corporations.

2. Proposal Development:

• Write, edit, and submit compelling grant proposals and applications.
• Develop clear and persuasive narratives that articulate the organization’s mission, programs, and funding needs.
• Collaborate with program staff to gather information and data for proposals.

3. Grant Management:

• Monitor and manage the grant application process from start to finish, including tracking deadlines and ensuring timely submissions.
• Assist in managing grants calendar for the development department.
• Process approved grant applications and checks (entering information into Instrumentl).
• Maintain a comprehensive database of grant applications, deadlines, and reporting requirements.
• Ensure compliance with grant regulations and reporting requirements.
• Work with Schuylkill Center staff to manage temporarily restricted grants and capital projects.

4. Reporting and Evaluation:

• Coordinate and support other departments in gathering impact data.
• Prepare and submit regular progress reports and financial reports to funders.
• Track the impact of funded projects and gather data to support future proposals.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of grant strategies and recommend improvements.

5. Communication and Collaboration:

• Serve as the primary point of contact for grant-related inquiries.
• Work closely with development, finance, and program staff to ensure alignment and accuracy in proposals and reports.
• Develop and maintain relationships with funders and stakeholders.
• Write and send thank you letters for approved applications;
• Work with Schuylkill Center staff to manage restricted grants and capital projects.

6. Administrative Duties:

• Maintain organized records of all grant-related documents and correspondence.
• Prepare presentations and materials for internal and external meetings as needed.

Education, Experience, and Expected Competencies

• Bachelor’s degree in English, Communications, Nonprofit Management, Public Administration, or a related field with at least five (5) years of relevant work experience. A Master’s degree is a plus.
• Proven experience writing corporate and foundation grant proposals and ability to manage several assignments concurrently are essential.
• Excellent knowledge of proposal submission and fundraising process, fundraising techniques and strategies.
• Strong research skills and knowledge of information sources such as trends, statistics and information on foundations and other potential funders.
• Familiarity with the Center’s regional and national grant makers that support similar organizations is highly preferred.
• Working knowledge of how to meet program income goals.
• Working knowledge and understanding of budgets and presentation of budgets to grant making institutions.
• Demonstrated experience and proven success in cultivating high net-worth individuals, corporations, and foundations.
• Proficiency and experience with a fundraising database, especially Salesforce and Instrumentl.
• Mastery of the full suite of Microsoft and/or Google computer programs.
• Strong relationship-building, verbal, and written communications skills.
• Proven track record of successful grant proposals and fundraising achievements.

Physical Demands/Work Environment

The physical demands and work environment characteristics described are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. The employee is also regularly required to stand, walk, and use hands and arms to operate general office equipment (PC, telephone, file cabinets, copier, fax machine, and printer). The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate to low.

Compensation

This is a full-time salaried position with a full range of benefits, including vacation, health, dental, vision, and retirement. Salary is commensurate with experience.

The Schuylkill Center is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate based on race, color, gender, religion, national origin, or sexual orientation. We value a racially, ethnically, and culturally diverse work community and we strongly encourage applications from people of all backgrounds.