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Employment

If you are interested in working to support the Maine Jewish Museum’s mission, browse our open roles and apply to be part of our team. We understand that people gain skills through a variety of professional, personal, educational, and volunteer experiences. If you believe you have the skills to succeed in one of our open positions, regardless of background, we encourage you to apply.

Location: Hybrid / Flexible (Portland, Maine proximity required)
Reports to: Executive Director, Dawn LaRochelle
Compensation: $48,000–$55,000 annually for 20 hours/week (equivalent to approx. $100,000–$110,000 full-time)

About the Maine Jewish Museum

The Maine Jewish Museum is a dynamic cultural hub in the heart of Portland, presenting contemporary art, history, and community programming that explores Jewish experience and broader themes of identity, migration, and belonging.

MJM is in a period of transformative growth. Over the past three years, community support has nearly quadrupled, elevating our annual operating revenue to more than $800,000 — with over 90% generated through philanthropy. We are now building the professional fundraising infrastructure required for our next chapter.

This newly created role represents a pivotal investment in that future.

The Opportunity

The Associate Director of Development is a senior-level, frontline fundraising role designed to serve as a strategic partner to the Executive Director.

This is not an administrative position.

We are seeking a relationship-driven fundraiser who excels at uncovering new philanthropic capacity, cultivating meaningful donor relationships, and preparing the groundwork for high-level solicitations. The majority of this role is outward-facing: meeting donors, identifying prospects, and building the systems that ensure no relationship falls through the cracks.

This position will be conducted primarily remotely, with regular in-person donor meetings in the Greater Portland area and occasional evening/weekend event participation.

Core Responsibilities

Frontline Fundraising & Relationship Building (70%)

  • Proactively identify and cultivate new major donor prospects beyond the Museum’s current core network
  • Conduct 40–50 discovery meetings annually
  • Personally solicit and close gifts and pledges of $10,000+
  • Develop and execute high-touch stewardship strategies
  • Serve as a strategic thought partner to the Executive Director, preparing donor briefings and mapping pathways to transformational gifts

Development Operations & Strategy (30%)

  • Lead selection and implementation of a professional CRM system
  • Establish best practices for donor data management and reporting
  • Project manage the annual fund appeal
  • Conduct prospect research and network mapping
  • Build a sustainable multi-year major gift pipeline

Year One Roadmap for Success

Months 1–2:
Select and implement a CRM system, migrate donor data, audit top 50 donors, and establish a strong workflow with the Executive Director.

Months 3–6:
Conduct 20+ discovery meetings to identify new capacity and engage underleveraged donors.

Months 7–12:
Shift to active solicitation and close 18–20 major gifts of $10,000+. Successfully manage execution of the annual fund appeal.

Qualifications

  • 5+ years of progressive nonprofit development experience
  • Demonstrated success personally closing gifts of $10,000+
  • Experience implementing or managing a CRM system
  • Highly self-directed and comfortable managing metrics in a flexible, part-time structure
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills
  • Professional presence and interpersonal skill to engage philanthropists, corporate leaders, and Board members
  • Genuine appreciation for art, history, and community building

Experience with planned giving is a plus.

Why This Role?

This is a rare opportunity for a seasoned development professional seeking part-time flexibility without sacrificing strategic impact.

You will step into:

  • An organization with proven community buy-in
  • An engaged and supportive Board
  • A dynamic Executive Director
  • A mandate to build a professional development shop with autonomy

MJM offers a retirement fund with a 2% match (after one year of employment), paid time off, professional development support, and the flexibility to work primarily from home while maintaining strong community presence in Portland.

To Apply

Please submit a resume and brief cover letter outlining your approach to major gift fundraising — and why a part-time structure appeals to you — to:

Dawn LaRochelle
Executive Director