Development Director

Overview of the Position

SEAL is entering an important phase of growth as we advance our strategic plan, expand our reach and influence, and build a more diversified and sustainable revenue model. 

The Development Director is a senior leader responsible for translating SEAL’s fundraising strategy into disciplined execution and measurable revenue growth. Reporting to the Head Development & External Relations Officer (HDERO), the Director will lead the day-to-day execution of SEAL’s development strategy, helping grow and diversify philanthropic revenue across institutional, individual, corporate and emerging funding opportunities.

The Development Director will build and actively manage SEAL’s diversified fundraising pipeline; advance cultivation and stewardship strategies; move new funding opportunities forward; and strengthen the systems, processes, and data needed to support effective fundraising and reliable revenue forecasting.

Working closely with the HDERO, President/Executive Director, SEAL Leadership Team, Development team, Finance, Programs, Impact & Learning (I&L), Marketing & Communications, the Director will help build a strong organization-wide culture of philanthropy and position SEAL for long-term growth.

The Director will provide strategic and operational leadership across the development function, establishing strong fundraising practices, clear priorities, effective workflows, and accountability for results. During the current phase of SEAL’s organizational development, Development & External Relations staff report directly to the HDERO.

This hybrid position is based in California. You will work from home and in the field, with the expectation to travel domestically 30-40% throughout the year.

About SEAL

For more than 15 years, SEAL has worked with school districts, county offices of education, schools, preschool LEAs, teachers, families, California Department of Education, and many other education champions to advance educational outcomes of English Learners and Dual Language Learners. It all began with Dr. Laurie Olsen and Sobrato Philanthropies whose strong belief that all children should have access to opportunities for growth and success led to designing, piloting and eventually creating the SEAL you know today.

Our vision at SEAL is simple, yet impactful: schools prepare all English Learners and Dual Language Learners to  learn, lead and thrive. Our core values focus on nurturing the intellectual and linguistic brilliance of young children, celebrating the importance of family culture and language in education, and supporting teachers through professional development and evidence-based instructional practices.

We work across California and nationally, partnering with preschools, elementary schools, districts, county offices and other educational stakeholders to ensure culturally and linguistically diverse children thrive. Extensive research has shown that SEAL both enhances teaching methods and leads to higher engagement and improved language and academic results among English Learners and Dual Language Learners. We’ve impacted  hundreds of classrooms, thousands of teachers, tens of thousands of students—and counting. The number of school districts successfully implementing SEAL grows each year.

SEAL addresses systemic inequities by transforming classrooms into joyful, rigorous, and language-affirming environments. Our Theory of Action drives impact across three integrated levels:

• Direct Impact: Building the capacity of teachers and leaders through specialized professional learning.

• Ecosystem Impact: Partnering with education organizations to embed MLL expertise into programs, tools, and training.

• Field Impact: Leading advocacy and awareness to elevate high-quality instructional practices at scale.

To learn more about SEAL, please visit SEAL.org.

Our Equity Commitment

Equity is a core value at SEAL. At SEAL, our commitment to diversity, equity & inclusion reflects SEAL's mission: "To Prepare All English Learners to learn, thrive, and lead." Equity is a core value at SEAL and we believe that diversity fosters equity. We're passionate about creating a workplace where all forms of diversity, age, gender identity, race, sexual orientation, physical or mental ability, ethnicity, perspective, and experience are seen as real value for the organization. To carry out our mission we actively recruit a workforce that reflects the SEAL community we serve, and as part of which, everyone feels empowered to bring their full, authentic selves to work. Our mission drives our innovation and connects us more closely to our partners and the communities we serve. Together, we act fearlessly, learn from each other, improve constantly, and continue to build a culture that encourages, supports, and celebrates the diverse voices, backgrounds, and cultures of our team members. These principles guide how we build our teams, cultivate leaders and develop an organization that embraces multiple approaches and points of view. We support an inclusive environment where team members feel empowered to share their experiences and ideas. We believe that non-profit organizations can be powerful platforms for social change and that our higher purpose is to drive equity for all.

About the Role

In this role, your work will include:

Strategic Fundraising & Revenue Growth (25%)

• Partner with the HDERO to operationalize SEAL’s multi-year fundraising strategy and annual revenue goals.

• Translate fundraising priorities and revenue goals established with the HDERO into annual and quarterly fundraising plans, portfolio targets, activities, and measurable outcomes.

• Build and actively manage a diversified fundraising pipeline across institutional, individual, and corporate philanthropy.

• Identify, qualify, prioritize, and advance prospective funders and donors aligned with SEAL’s strategic priorities and opportunities for impact.

• Develop cultivation and solicitation strategies for priority prospects, including relationship owners, next steps, ask amounts, timelines, and engagement strategies.

• Regularly assess pipeline health, probability, timing, and risk and develop revenue forecasts and recommendations for review with the HDERO and organizational leadership.

• Use philanthropic trends, market intelligence, funder priorities, and development data to identify emerging opportunities and recommend fundraising approaches and opportunities.

• Partner with organizational leaders to develop compelling funding opportunities and cases for support that connect SEAL’s impact and strategic priorities with funder, donor and corporate partner interests.

• Identify and advance opportunities for larger, multi-year philanthropic investments that support SEAL’s long-term sustainability and growth.

Funder & Donor Cultivation, Stewardship & Relationship Management (25%)

• Drive implementation of SEAL’s cultivation and stewardship strategy across the development portfolio, in partnership with the HDERO.

• Manage a portfolio of priority funders, donors, corporate partners, and prospects, building authentic relationships that lead to increased engagement, renewal, and investment.

• Develop differentiated cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies based on funder and donor interests, relationship history, funding cycles, and organizational priorities.

• Ensure priority funders, donors, corporate prospects and prospects have clear relationship strategies, ownership, next actions, and timelines.

• Prepare the HDERO, President/Executive Director, Board members, and other organizational leaders for funder and donor meetings, solicitations, and stewardship opportunities.

• Develop funder and donor briefings, meeting strategies, talking points, recommended asks, and follow-up plans for priority relationships.

• Identify opportunities to deepen existing relationships and grow philanthropic investment over time.

• Partner with Marketing & Communications to develop funder- and donor-facing communications, impact stories, cases for support, and stewardship materials.

• Help design and execute strategic cultivation and stewardship opportunities, including briefings, gatherings, convenings, and other engagement activities.

• Build strong, trusted relationships with philanthropic partners and serve as an effective external representative of SEAL on development and fundraising priorities.

Institutional, Individual & Corporate Giving (20%)

• Provide strategic oversight of SEAL’s institutional giving portfolio, working closely with the Senior Grants Manager, who manages the grants lifecycle, proposal development, reporting, and grant compliance.

• Identify and advance opportunities to grow and diversify SEAL’s institutional funding base, including larger, multi-year investments.

• Partner with the Senior Grants Manager and organizational leaders to shape funding strategies and position SEAL competitively for institutional opportunities.

• Advance and execute SEAL’s individual giving strategy, including identification, qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of major donor prospects.

• Support the HDERO in activating Board members as philanthropic ambassadors, connectors, cultivators, and stewards.

• Develop prospect research, briefings, relationship strategies, talking points, and follow-up plans that enable Board and executive leaders to effectively advance priority relationships.

• Execute and grow SEAL’s corporate philanthropy strategy, identifying companies and corporate leaders whose interests align with SEAL’s mission and strategic priorities.

• Develop opportunities for corporate engagement that extend beyond transactional sponsorships and support long-term relationships and investment.

• Explore emerging philanthropic partnerships and funding models that support SEAL’s strategic growth and expanding reach.

• Ensure institutional, individual, and corporate fundraising strategies operate as an integrated portfolio rather than as separate fundraising activities.

Development Operations, Forecasting & Performance (15%)

• Establish and maintain disciplined development systems and operating practices that support effective fundraising execution and organizational decision-making.

• Own the integrity and day-to-day management of SEAL’s development pipeline and forecasting processes, ensuring leadership has timely and reliable information about expected philanthropic revenue, opportunities, risks, and next actions.

• Ensure Salesforce serves as a reliable source of record for funders, donors, corporate partners, prospects, opportunities, relationship activity, pipeline stage, and revenue forecasting.

• Establish and maintain clear standards for pipeline management, moves management, portfolio stages, data quality, stewardship tracking, and development reporting.

• Lead regular pipeline and portfolio reviews to assess progress, identify opportunities and risks, and determine next actions.

• Develop and maintain fundraising dashboards and performance indicators that provide the HDERO and organizational leadership with visibility into fundraising performance, forecasted revenue, pipeline health, retention and renewal, and progress toward goals.

• Partner with Finance to reconcile fundraising data, monitor restricted and unrestricted philanthropic revenue, and strengthen revenue forecasting.

• Partner with the Development Coordinator to ensure accurate and timely funder, donor, corporate partner, prospect, opportunity, and relationship data.

• Lead implementation and continuous improvement of development workflows, standard operating procedures, portfolio management practices, and team operating rhythms.

• Use fundraising data and performance indicators to evaluate strategies, identify gaps, and recommend adjustments.

• Ensure development work is appropriately planned, documented, assigned, and tracked through SEAL’s project management systems.

• Promote consistent adoption of Salesforce and development operating practices across the Development team and with cross-functional partners involved in fundraising activities.

Development Leadership & Cross-Functional Collaboration (15%)

• Provide day-to-day functional leadership and coordination across SEAL’s development priorities, establishing clear work plans, responsibilities, timelines, and accountability.

• Partner with the HDERO to establish an effective operating cadence for development, including pipeline reviews, portfolio strategy, work planning, and progress reporting.

• Serve as a senior resource and thought partner to Development team members, helping remove barriers, strengthen execution, and advance fundraising priorities.

• Foster a collaborative working environment that balances strategic thinking, strong relationship management, disciplined execution, and accountability for results.

• Under the strategic direction of the HDERO, coordinate cross-functional development initiatives.

• Partner across departments, and executive leadership to identify and develop compelling philanthropic opportunities.

• Establish clear cross-functional roles, deliverables, and timelines for proposals, reports, funder and donor engagement, events, and other fundraising priorities.

• Establish clear cross-functional workflows for funder requests requiring programmatic information, organizational data, research, evidence, or financial information, ensuring needs, ownership, timelines, and contributions are identified early and aligned with each team’s expertise.

• Partner with Impact & Learning (I&L) to appropriately incorporate SEAL impact data, research, evidence, and analysis into funder-facing materials, while maintaining Development’s accountability for managing and completing the funder deliverable.

• Anticipate cross-functional dependencies, information needs, and capacity constraints early; identify requests requiring significant new research, analysis, data collection or other staff capacity; surface risks and competing priorities for leadership alignment when needed.

• Strengthen communication and coordination between Development and other organizational functions.

• Help build organization-wide understanding of fundraising priorities and cultivate a shared culture of philanthropy.

• Provide HDERO with regular visibility into development priorities, progress, risks, capacity, and opportunities requiring leadership decisions or intervention.

In addition, you’ll also likely play roles focused on growing and strengthening SEAL, like:

• Building and developing relationships with SEAL stakeholders 

• Supporting the onboarding and development of new team members

Who You Are

This is what’s required for the role…

• 8+ years of progressively responsible nonprofit fundraising or development experience, including experience leading significant fundraising initiatives or portfolios.

• Demonstrated success developing and executing fundraising strategies that generate measurable revenue growth.

• Experience managing a diversified fundraising portfolio that includes institutional philanthropy and meaningful experience with individual and/or corporate giving.

• Demonstrated success cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding significant philanthropic relationships across institutional, individual, and/or corporate philanthropy, including experience securing significant investments.

• Experience building and actively managing fundraising pipelines, moves-management strategies, and revenue forecasts.

• Strong relationship-building skills and the ability to engage effectively with institutional funders, individual donors, corporate leaders, Board members, executives, and other senior stakeholders.

• Demonstrated ability to lead through influence, coordinate the work of others, establish accountability, and advance complex initiatives across teams.

• Strong strategic planning and project management skills, with demonstrated ability to translate strategy into clear priorities, work plans, ownership, timelines, and results.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to translate complex programmatic work into compelling philanthropic opportunities.

• Strong analytical skills and demonstrated ability to use fundraising data, CRM systems (Salesforce preferred) , and performance indicators to inform decisions and improve results.

• Experience collaborating effectively across program, research, finance, communications, and executive teams.

• Demonstrated judgment, initiative, accountability, and ability to operate effectively in a growing and evolving organization.

• Deep commitment to SEAL’s mission and improving educational opportunities and outcomes for multilingual learners.

This is what’s desirable for the role…

• Experience in education, educational equity, philanthropy, or another mission-driven field relevant to SEAL’s work.

• Experience developing corporate partnerships or corporate philanthropy programs.

• Experience engaging and activating nonprofit Boards in fundraising and relationship development.

• Strong knowledge of philanthropic trends and the broader funding landscape.

• Experience helping an organization build or mature its fundraising infrastructure during a period of growth or organizational change.

• Experience supervising, coaching, or developing development professionals.

• Familiarity with project management systems such as Monday.com.

We expect all SEAL staff to be adept at…

SEAL has codified its expectations for success and core competencies in a shared competency model. SEAL’s core competencies include:

• Adaptability and growth mindset

• Collaboration and teamwork

• Connection to mission and values

• Demonstrates a commitment to equity

• Effective communication

• Effective planning and follow-through

• Emotional intelligence

• Expertise in area of focus

• Presenting and facilitating

• Strategic and critical thinking

Location & Compensation

This hybrid position is based in California. You will work from home and in the field, with the expectation to travel domestically 30-40% throughout the year. The salary range starts at $183,000. Salary is commensurate with experience. Our highly competitive benefits package includes: 100% coverage for employee medical, dental, vision, life and AD&D, long and short-term disability benefits. 50% coverage for dependent(s) for medical, dental and vision benefits. Up to 6% 401(k) matching. Medical/Dependent Care FSA. Self-Care Program, Professional Development, and Telecommuting Ergonomics Program. 20 days of PTO/year.

Career Pathways

At SEAL, one can both take on additional leadership responsibilities within their current position, and move along a promotion pathway. In either case, we rely on our competency model and evidence about practice to guide those decisions. 

At SEAL, we are committed to building a diverse and inclusive organization in which we give voice to, and meet the needs of, the communities, teachers, and students we serve. We believe in lifelong learning and continuous improvement, and we are ever-evolving the processes through which we select and support team members and foster a culture of universal belonging and empowerment. SEAL encourages applications from individuals of diverse backgrounds and lived experiences, especially those from immigrant and English Learner communities, people of color and members of other historically marginalized groups. SEAL is committed to the principles of equal employment opportunity for all employees and applicants for employment.