Offered by: Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) and Smith College Office of Alumnae
Relations and Development
Hosted by: Smith College Major Gifts Team
Initial Contact: Kathy Robbins, krobbins@smith.edu or 413-585-4295
Supervisor: Laure Morris, lmorris@smith.edu or 413-585-2055

Deadline to apply: Friday, March 6, 2020

Spend your summer with the Smith Major Gifts Team learning how we seek and solicit individuals’ philanthropic support for Smith College. Our professional association (CASE) offers a fabulous summer internship program designed to increase and diversify the number of bright undergraduates who consider fundraising/development and alumnae relations as a profession. CASE defines diversity to include ethnicity, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, age, ability.

The CASE program is an eight-week summer internship (June 1 to July 24, 2020) in which the Intern works 32-hours-per-week with the Major Gifts Team in Dawes House and in the field meeting with potential donors. The Intern receives on-the-job training and will gain valuable skills, background and understanding in major gift fundraising. A mentor is provided for each intern along with networking opportunities, weekly eLearning and online resources.

Other benefits include an expense-paid trip to the CASE Internship three-day training in Washington, DC, and complimentary registration to the 2020 CASE Conference for Student Advancement. The internship provides a $5,000 summer stipend paid in two equal installments in Weeks 4 and 8 of the program.

Duties and Responsibilities:

 Collaborate closely with frontline major gift officers to understand the process and nature of individual donor fundraising. Interview Major Gift staff members about their work, their donors and prospective donors, and the issues and questions most often raised in face-to-face meetings.

 Participate in meetings and workshops with the Major Gifts team and the division of Alumnae Relations and Development to understand the vision and strategy for alumnae engagement and the case philanthropic support for Smith College.

 Review institutional strategic plan and materials for Smith’s current development priorities: scholarships, Neilson Library renovation, endowed professorships and key signature programs such as sustainability, equity and inclusion, JKC Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Urban Fellows, Project Coach. Develop innovative methods to demonstrate the impact of these priorities on current and future Smith students.

 Craft honest responses, develop case-based examples, and suggest student representatives to address questions and concerns voiced by prospective major donors (primarily alumnae) about the changing cultural landscape at Smith. Illustrate Smith’s core values remain foundational to the Smith student experience.

Qualifications:
 Knowledge of the Smith student population.
 Critical thinking and problem solving skills.
 Creativity in addressing donor concerns and developing compelling examples of impact of philanthropy  on current and future Smith students.
 Strong oral and written communication skills.
 Professional demeanor and attire to meet and interact with prospective major donors.
 Integrity in dealing with confidential data.
 Desire to learn about fundraising/development as a career option.

To Apply:
Submit a resume no later than Friday, March 6 with a cover letter describing your interest in exploring fundraising as a career to: krobbins@smith.edu. Interviews begin as applications are received.
For questions, please contact Kathy Robbins, krobbins@smith.edu or 413-585-4295.