Vice President for Advancement and External Relations

About the role

The Vice President for Advancement and External Relations serves as a member of the President’s Cabinet and provides strategic leadership for advancement, grant development, marketing and communications, major institutional events, alumni engagement, and foundation relations. Reporting directly to the President, the Vice President advances the College’s mission by increasing philanthropic support, strengthening community and business partnerships, enhancing institutional visibility, and securing external resources that support student success and organizational sustainability.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic direction for the College Foundation through supervision of the Executive Director and partnership with the Foundation Board, fostering a culture of philanthropy and advancing the Foundation’s growth, sustainability, and impact.
• Develop and implement a comprehensive advancement and external relations strategy aligned with the College’s mission, strategic priorities, and long‑term sustainability goals.
• Lead and coordinate institutional fundraising efforts, including major gifts, annual giving, donor stewardship, sponsorships, and corporate and foundation relations.
• Provide strategic oversight and coordination of the College’s grant development and administration activities, including identification of funding opportunities, proposal development and submission, and grant compliance and reporting.
• Serve as a primary representative and ambassador for the College, cultivating relationships with community leaders, employers, business and industry, foundations, economic development organizations, community agencies, donors, alumni, and other external stakeholders.
• Develop and maintain productive relationships with local, state, and federal officials and advocate for initiatives that support the College’s mission and strategic priorities.
• Provide strategic oversight of integrated marketing, communications, public relations, branding, media relations, reputation management, issues communication, and digital engagement strategies.
• Provide strategic oversight of major institutional and external‑facing events that advance College priorities and strengthen engagement with students, employees, alumni, donors, partners, and the broader community.
• Utilize data, performance metrics, and assessment practices to evaluate effectiveness, inform strategic decision‑making, improve outcomes, and ensure responsible stewardship of institutional, donor, and grant resources.
• Serve as a strategic advisor to the President and Cabinet on matters related to advancement, communications, community and government relations, and external affairs.
• Supervise, develop, and evaluate assigned personnel while fostering a culture of collaboration, accountability, innovation, customer service, and continuous improvement.
• Perform other duties as assigned by the President.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree from an accredited institution.
• Significant progressively responsible leadership experience that includes advancement and/or fundraising, together with experience in one or more of the following: communications, marketing, grant development, community relations, government or public affairs, higher education administration, or a related field.
• Demonstrated success securing philanthropic support, including significant gifts or other charitable contributions, and demonstrated success securing grants, sponsorships, corporate or foundation support, or other external funding.
• Excellent written, verbal, presentation, and interpersonal communication skills, with demonstrated ability to serve as an ambassador for the institution and build and sustain trust‑based relationships and productive partnerships across diverse internal and external constituencies.
• Experience leading and supervising professional staff and managing budgets.
• Demonstrated ability to utilize data and analytics to inform strategy, evaluate effectiveness, and improve organizational performance.
• Demonstrated capacity to lead change, manage competing priorities, solve complex problems, and build consensus across diverse constituencies.
• Demonstrated commitment to ethical leadership, transparency, collaboration, and student‑centered decision‑making, and to the community college mission of expanding educational opportunity, workforce development, and community advancement.

Additional considerations

• Community college experience.
• Experience working with a college foundation, nonprofit board, or advisory board.
• Experience leading successful comprehensive fundraising campaigns.
• Experience in government relations, public affairs, workforce development, or economic development partnerships.
• Experience in alumni engagement or alumni relations.
• Operation of a State Vehicle (Yes).
• Supervises Employees (Yes).
• Required travel.

Benefits

Southwest Virginia Community College offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes health insurance, retirement benefits through the Virginia Retirement System, paid leave, and other valuable state employee benefits.

Pay

Hiring range: $111,100 to $140,000

Schedule

Monday – Friday, 7:45 am to 4:30 pm with evening and weekend hours as needed.