Careers

About NAL/AF: 

New American Leaders (NAL) and New American Leaders Action Fund (NALAF) are working in tandem to build an inclusive democracy by preparing first and second-generation immigrants and refugees to run for office, win their campaigns, and lead in elected office. We are the only organizations preparing New Americans to enter the political process and govern with accountability and authenticity. As a result, more New Americans will run for office, engage their communities, turn out new voters, and ultimately serve as values-aligned leaders in office who can advance just and equitable policies. 

About the Role: 

Reporting to the Chief Advancement Officer (CAO), the Director of Development & External Engagement is a senior partner in growing and stewarding the financial and reputational resources that fuel NAL/AF’s mission. This person will help lead the advancement function across NAL/AF — driving institutional and major donor fundraising, cultivating strategic partnerships, elevating alumni elected officials as spokespeople, and overseeing a communications function that advances fundraising, partnership, and brand goals across our 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) entities.

As deputy to the CAO, this person will step in on advancement strategy and external-facing leadership as needed. The scope and structure of this position — including team size and supervisory responsibilities may evolve with NAL/AF’s growth.

This role suits a senior development-and-communications generalist who thrives at the intersection of writing, fundraising, and external relationship-building, and who is energized by helping build a growing function rather than stepping into a fully fixed one.

Please submit your resume and a cover letter detailing how your professional background aligns with this position via this link.

What You Will Do

External Engagement & Strategic Partnerships (40%)

• In partnership with CAO, develop a strategy for external engagement and strategic partnerships. 
• Cultivate partnerships with aligned organizations, coalitions, and influencers to advance shared goals and NAL/AF’s reach. Identify opportunities for enhancing brand recognition. 
• Identify and prepare credible spokespeople across the NAL/AF network — alumni elected officials, program participants, executive leaders — as visible validators of impact.
• Build relationships with media and other external audiences. Help ensure that we are positioning ourselves in the right spaces, platforms, events, coalitions, and people  to align with our advancement goals. 
• Partner with the CAO and CEO to prepare for external-facing events, board and funder meetings, interviews, and site visits. Help ensure these opportunities are maximized. 

Development (35%)

• Partner with the CAO on institutional and major-donor strategy 
• Plan and execute cultivation events — funder tables, small convenings, site visits, briefings — managing logistics, run-of-show, and follow-up.
• Support cultivation meetings, site visits, and stewardship moments.
• Help maintain the moves-management system across both entities through qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship. Partner with the CAO on the development calendar and revenue forecasting.
• Work with the team to translate programmatic impact and policy wins into case statements, one-pagers, periodic donor email updates, impact reports.

Communications & Brand (25%)

• Supervise the Communications Specialist, setting priorities and editorial calendar so external presence reinforces national positioning, donor pipeline, and partnership goals.
• Personally write op-eds, statements, donor/partner proposals, board and funder briefings, talking points, and rapid-response content.
• Refine and protect NAL/AF’s brand voice and identity; recommend ways to strengthen brand presence with donors and partners.
• Prepare staff and leadership for media interactions, donor meetings, and external events.

Who You Are:

To be successful in this position you will have a combination of the following experience and qualities:

• 5+ years fundraising experience
•  Experience managing a team.
• Experience managing and tracking budgets.
• Program conception, planning, and execution: You have experience and a track record of conceiving strategy and overseeing implementation for a team, function, program, or project. You have taken a concept from idea to execution with success.
• Development fundamentals expert: Track record preparing foundation proposals and reports, stewarding major donors, and managing a moves-management pipeline or a demonstrated ability to learn the distinction quickly.
• Strong written and verbal communicator: Proven ability to turn complex ideas into exciting narratives.
• Relationship builder: Skilled at cultivating funders, peer organizations, coalitions, and/or influencers, with sound judgment.
• Ownership mentality: Sets a vision, drives it forward independently, anticipates problems, and course-corrects as needed.
• Inclusive, collaborative leader: Actively seeks staff input while still owning final decisions; keeps development, programs, and communications in sync.
• Coach and mentor: Gives actionable feedback and takes the time to develop others — staff, alumni, or executive leadership prepping for a pitch.
• Mission-aligned: Cultural awareness and sensitivity to immigrant communities, with genuine commitment to inclusive democracy.

Compensation and Benefits:

At NAL/AF, we believe in investing in our employees’ well-being and professional growth. Our comprehensive benefits are designed to support you in achieving a healthy work-life balance, maintaining your health, and advancing your career. NAL/AF offers a competitive salary, benefits, and leave policies. Our comprehensive benefits package includes:

• 20 days of vacation plus holidays including a winter holiday break
• Full coverage health insurance options for medical, dental, and vision
• Health reimbursement arrangement stipend for fertility expenses and gender affirming care (eligible after 3 months)
• Vanguard 401K plan with a 5% match (eligible after 3 months)
• Health care flexible spending account plan
• Life insurance and personal accident insurance
• Voluntary short-term and long-term disability insurance
• Monthly telecommunications stipend
• Annual work-from-home stipend

About NAL/AF: 

New American Leaders (NAL) and New American Leaders Action Fund (NALAF) are working in tandem to build an inclusive democracy by preparing first and second-generation immigrants and refugees to run for office, win their campaigns, and lead in elected office. We are the only organizations preparing New Americans to enter the political process and govern with accountability and authenticity. As a result, more New Americans will run for office, engage their communities, turn out new voters, and ultimately serve as values-aligned leaders in office who can advance just and equitable policies. 

About the Role: 
Reporting to the Chief Advancement Officer, the Development Manager and Writer supports NAL/AF’s fundraising program by turning program strategy, research, and organizational priorities into clear, compelling, and timely fundraising and development materials.

You will prepare a wide range of materials that help NAL/AF secure, renew, and deepen funder relationships, including proposals, letters of inquiry, concept notes, pitch decks, funder briefings, annual reports, grant reports, newsletters, website copy, stewardship updates, and other external communications. You will also maintain accurate records of prospect and grant activity in NAL/AF’s moves-management system and help ensure that deadlines, deliverables, and follow-up activities stay on track.

This role is a strong fit for an excellent writer and organized self-starter who enjoys working across teams, can make complex ideas accessible, and takes ownership of moving projects from early concept through completion.

What You Will Do: 

Fundraising, Grant Writing, and Funder Stewardship (60%) 

• Draft, package, and submit letters of inquiry, concept notes, full proposals, renewal requests, funder reports, and acknowledgement letters.
• Translate program strategy, outcomes, and organizational priorities into clear, compelling narratives.
• Track grant requirements, deliverables, outcomes, and budget status, flagging risks early.
• Develop pitch decks, funder briefings, talking points, one-pagers, case statements,  funder newsletters, organizational updates, campaign communications, annual reports, and other fundraising collateral.
• Partner with finance staff to develop accurate budgets and budget narratives.
• Partner with programs staff to develop accurate programmatic narratives.
• Coordinate internal review, approvals, attachments, and submission processes for funding requests; follow through with submissions.
• Work with the CAO on renewal and upgrade strategies, including opportunities for multi-year support, increased investment, and new programmatic funding.
• Maintain a strong understanding of each funder’s interests, history with NAL/AF, giving patterns, and relationship status; support with researching foundations, corporations, and major donors and helping the team prepare for funder meetings/events. 
• Support with implementing fundraising campaigns, including but not limited to Giving Tuesday and End of Year campaign.
• Assist with planning and implementing fundraising events, as needed.

Cross-Team Coordination and Development Systems (40%) 

• Maintain an accurate calendar of proposal, report, renewal, moves- management, and stewardship deadlines on our CRM and project management tools. 

• Maintain donors records and ensure information is up to date in the accurate portals. 

• Build trusted working relationships across the organization.

• Establish systems for gathering timely content for proposals, reports, decks, newsletters, annual reports, and other materials.

• Lead or participate in regular cross-team check-ins tied to active grants and upcoming deadlines.

• Maintain working knowledge of NAL/AF’s programs, policies, research, campaigns, and organizational priorities.

• Maintain a centralized library of boilerplate, statistics, success stories, testimonials, organizational language, budgets, and reusable content.

• Keep external written materials consistent, accurate, current, and aligned with NAL/AF’s voice.

• Maintain complete records of prospect, proposal, grant, reporting, and stewardship activity in NAL/AF’s moves-management system.

• Generate gift reports to track donations and help address issues that arise with donations. 

• Regularly update NAL’s giving profiles on platforms such as Network for Good, Benevity, Charity Navigator, and Guidestar to ensure the organization’s information is current.

• Identify ways to improve development workflows, reduce duplication, and strengthen institutional knowledge.

Who You Are:

To be successful in this position you will have a combination of the following experience and qualities:

• Grant Writing and/or Development Experience: You have a track record of writing foundation proposals and reports that win and renew funding across a range of grant sizes and across multiple funders concurrently. You understand moves-management and are committed to creating a positive experience for our donors. 

• Organized, Deadline-Driven Operator: You are meticulous about deadlines, process, and version control. You build systems that keep work moving across multiple concurrent deadlines without dropping details — and you keep a clear record of where every grant stands in its lifecycle.

• Cross-Team Collaborator: You build trusted working relationships with staff, and you know how to ask the right questions to surface timely content. You make things easier on your colleagues.

• Mission Aligned: You have demonstrated cultural awareness and sensitivity to the needs of immigrant communities, with a commitment to building an inclusive democracy.

• Vision, Ownership, and a Drive to Achieve Results: You develop your plan and take it upon yourself to figure out how to get it done — anticipating problems, brainstorming solutions, driving work forward, and course-correcting where needed.

• Coaching and Learning Mentality: You take the time to teach and offer useful, actionable feedback to colleagues whose work feeds into proposals, and you seek and engage well with constructive feedback on your own writing.

• Relational: You build authentic relationships with colleagues and external partners — including foundation program officers — based on mutual trust and respect, across lines of difference.

Compensation and Benefits:

At NAL/AF, we believe in investing in our employees’ well-being and professional growth. Our comprehensive benefits are designed to support you in achieving a healthy work-life balance, maintaining your health, and advancing your career. NAL/AF offers a competitive salary, benefits, and leave policies. Our comprehensive benefits package includes:

• 20 days of vacation plus holidays including a winter holiday break

• Full coverage health insurance options for medical, dental, and vision

• Health reimbursement arrangement stipend for fertility expenses and gender affirming care (eligible after 3 months)

• Vanguard 401K plan with a 5% match (eligible after 3 months)

• Health care flexible spending account plan

• Life insurance and personal accident insurance

• Voluntary short-term and long-term disability insurance

• Monthly telecommunications stipend

• Annual work-from-home stipend

Both boards play a vital role in advancing our missions and ensuring our organizations thrive. We are looking for candidates that fit the following criteria:

• Commitment to Mission: The optimal candidate is politically engaged with values rooted in social justice. They should have a strong gender and racial equity lens, even if they themselves are not women or people of color.
• Leadership Skills: We seek individuals with proven leadership abilities, innovative thinking, and the ability to drive positive change. Ideally, they have previous board experience. 
• Diverse Background: Candidates should have life experience connected to the immigrant experience. Our boards aim to reflect the diverse communities we serve so we encourage nominations from individuals of different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives.
• Fundraising Commitment: Board members are expected to make a sincere commitment to actively contribute their time, skills, and resources towards NAL or NALAF’s mission, ensuring that their leadership is underpinned by a meaningful personal annual donation. Additionally, each board member is required to lead by example in fundraising efforts, pledging to secure a minimum of $10,000 in financial support for New American Leaders and a minimum of $5,000 for New American Leaders Action Fund.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss the nomination process further, please feel free to contact Dani Gatson at danielle@newamericanleaders.org.

Thank you for your continued support and dedication to New American Leaders and New American Leaders Action Fund. Together, we can make a lasting impact on the lives of those we serve.