Managing Director of Development

September 2026 | Philadelphia, PA / Remote
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The Center for Black Educator Development seeks a strategic and entrepreneurial Managing Director of Development to build and lead a comprehensive fundraising program that will fuel the organization’s next phase of national growth and advance its mission to rebuild the Black Teacher Pipeline.

About Center for Black Educator Development

The Center for Black Educator Development (CBED) exists to rebuild the national Black Teacher Pipeline and advance educational equity by ensuring Black students have access to outstanding educators who reflect their lived experiences, cultures, and communities.

Founded in 2019 by nationally recognized educator and advocate Sharif El-Mekki, CBED has quickly become a leading voice in education and racial justice. Through innovative programs, strategic partnerships, and national advocacy, the organization is creating pathways that inspire young people to pursue careers in education while supporting Black educators throughout every stage of their professional journey. Signature initiatives include the Black Men in Education Convening, Freedom Schools Literacy Academy, Teaching Academy, and the Future Teachers of Excellence Fellowship, all of which contribute to strengthening and sustaining a diverse educator workforce.

As CBED continues to expand its national reach and influence, the organization is entering an exciting new stage of growth. With a respected founder, a highly engaged executive leadership team, established institutional supporters, and programs producing measurable impact, CBED is making a significant investment in building a comprehensive development program that will sustain its long-term vision. The Managing Director of Development will play a pivotal leadership role in shaping that future by building the strategy, systems, and relationships that will fuel the organization’s next chapter of growth.

About the Position

The Managing Director of Development is a newly created leadership role responsible for building and leading a comprehensive development program that supports CBED’s continued national growth and impact. Reporting to the Chief of Staff and Advancement, the Managing Director will serve as the organization’s senior fundraising strategist, overseeing the development of an integrated fundraising program that includes institutional giving, individual philanthropy, major gifts, annual giving, corporate partnerships, donor stewardship, and development operations. This position represents a unique opportunity for an experienced fundraising leader who enjoys building.

While CBED brings a nationally recognized mission, respected leadership, established institutional support, and strong external partnerships, the Managing Director will play a central role in creating the strategy, systems, operating practices, and organizational discipline that will support the organization’s next phase of growth. Working closely with Founder and CEO Sharif El-Mekki, executive leadership, the Board of Directors, and external fundraising partners, the Managing Director will combine strategic vision with hands-on execution to build a sustainable development function capable of supporting CBED’s long-term impact.

Key Responsibilities

Build and Lead Development Strategy

• Assess CBED’s current fundraising landscape, systems, donor relationships, and opportunities.
• Develop and implement a comprehensive multi-year fundraising strategy aligned with organizational priorities.
• Partner across finance, programs, communications, partnerships, and executive leadership to connect fundraising strategy with organizational planning and capacity.
• Establish annual fundraising plans, revenue projections, benchmarks, and performance metrics.
• Build internal structures and accountability systems that support sustainable fundraising growth.
• Leverage fundraising dashboards and performance reports to analyze trends, identify opportunities and risks, and provide strategic recommendations to leadership and the Board that inform fundraising priorities, resource allocation, and decision-making.

Grow Individual and Major Giving

• Build and lead a comprehensive major and individual giving program establishing a sustainable pipeline of high-net-worth, transformational, and emerging philanthropic partners.
• Lead institutional fundraising strategy in partnership with external grant consultants while expanding relationships with foundation, government, and corporate funders to diversify and strengthen CBED’s philanthropic portfolio.
• Diversify philanthropic support beyond existing funding sources.
• Strengthen donor stewardship practices to foster long-term engagement and investment.

Expand Revenue Opportunities

• Strengthen corporate sponsorships, particularly surrounding the Black Men in Education Convening.
• Expand annual giving initiatives and special campaigns.
• Lead the development and execution of a diversified fundraising strategy for the Future Teachers of Excellence Fellowship, including identifying, cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding foundation, corporate, government, and individual funding partners to ensure the program’s long-term sustainability.
• Identify philanthropic opportunities to support Teaching Academy expansion and other strategic initiatives.

Partner with Leadership and the Board

• Serve as a strategic advisor to the CEO, Chief of Staff and Advancement, and executive leadership team on fundraising strategy.
• Partner with Board members to strengthen fundraising engagement and accountability.
• Help leaders across the organization understand and participate effectively in donor cultivation and stewardship.
• Advise leadership on fundraising timelines, tradeoffs, resource requirements, and revenue potential, helping assess the financial feasibility and appropriate sequencing of major organizational priorities and investments.

Strengthen Development Operations

• Establish the policies, processes, workflows, and operating practices that support a disciplined, integrated, and sustainable development function.
• Oversee development systems, donor data, and Salesforce implementation.
• Direct fundraising planning across institutional giving, individual giving, corporate partnerships, annual giving, and donor communications.
• Collaborate closely with communications, finance, program, and partnerships teams to ensure fundraising efforts accurately reflect organizational impact.
• Coordinate and collaborate effectively with external fundraising consultants and strategic partners to ensure an integrated, organization-wide development strategy.

Lead and Develop the Team

• Provide strategic leadership for development staff and future team growth.
• Foster a collaborative, high-performing, and mission-driven fundraising culture.
• Establish clear priorities, expectations, and accountability across the development function.

Key Qualifications

• Passion for CBED’s mission and a demonstrated commitment to educational equity, racial justice, and expanding opportunities for historically underserved communities.
• Seven or more years of progressively responsible fundraising leadership experience, including success overseeing multiple fundraising strategies such as major gifts, individual giving, foundation relations, corporate partnerships, annual giving and special campaigns.
• Demonstrated success building or significantly strengthening a comprehensive development function, including establishing fundraising strategy, operational infrastructure, systems, performance measures, and organizational accountability that support long-term growth.
• Proven track record cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding major and transformational gifts while building long-term relationships with high-net-worth individuals, institutional funders, and corporate partners.
• Experience developing multi-year fundraising strategies, revenue projections, donor pipelines, and measurable benchmarks that support organizational growth.
• Experience partnering with executive leaders, founders, and board of directors to advance fundraising priorities and foster a culture of philanthropy.
• Experience leading, mentoring, and developing high-performing teams while cultivating a collaborative and inclusive work environment.
• Experience implementing or optimizing donor databases or CRM systems, preferably Salesforce, and using data to inform fundraising strategy, forecasting, and decision-making.
• Exceptional relationship-building, written, and verbal communication skills, with the ability to develop compelling cases for support, proposals, presentations, and donor communications.
• Strong strategic thinking, project management, and organizational skills, with the ability to balance long-term planning and day-to-day execution in a fast-paced environment.
• Bachelor’s degree recommended. An advanced degree or relevant professional certification, such as CFRE, is preferred.

Center for Black Educator Development does not discriminate in employment opportunities or practices on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law.

The salary range for this position is $145,000 – $165,000, commensurate with experience.
To express interest in this position, please submit your application in confidence via the application form below.