Principal Gift Officer

Cornell University welcomes candidates for the position of Principal Gift Officer in our Alumni Affairs and Development division, based in Ithaca, NY. This role offers the opportunity to work closely with university leaders and engage with some of Cornell's most devoted philanthropic partners in advancing the university's highest priorities.

Position Summary

The Principal Gift Officer is a senior fundraising professional responsible for cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding Cornell's highest-capacity donors and prospects. This position manages a portfolio of principal gift households, consisting of individuals with the potential to make philanthropic commitments of $10 million or more.

Working closely with university leadership, faculty, deans, volunteers, and development colleagues, the Principal Gift Officer develops and implements individualized fundraising strategies designed to deepen engagement and inspire transformational philanthropic support. The role is responsible for advancing prospects through the fundraising cycle, including cultivation, solicitation, proposal development, stewardship, and ongoing relationship management.

The Principal Gift Officer regularly solicits and closes annual gifts and multi-year commitments at the principal gift level and collaborates with partners across the university to align donor interests with institutional priorities. The position also provides strategic support to senior leaders and volunteers engaged in principal gift fundraising efforts and ensures a high level of donor stewardship and engagement throughout the fundraising process.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage a portfolio of approximately 30-40 principal gift households, developing and implementing strategies to cultivate, solicit, and steward donors and prospects capable of making transformational philanthropic investments.
• Regularly solicit and close annual gifts and multi-year commitments of $10 million or more, advancing donor relationships and aligning philanthropic interests with university priorities.
• Partner with university trustees, senior leaders, faculty, deans, unit directors, volunteers, and development colleagues to develop and execute fundraising strategies for principal gift prospects.

• Build and advance relationships with principal gift prospects through individualized cultivation activities, including visits, events, advisory councils, committees, and other university activities aligned with donor interests and philanthropic priorities.

• Conduct frequent travel and in-person visits with prospects, donors, and volunteers to build relationships, advance gift discussions, and secure philanthropic commitments.
• Provide professional guidance on giving opportunities and collaborate with colleagues in Trusts, Estates and Planned Giving and other specialized areas to support complex gift discussions and customized giving strategies.
• Ensure exceptional stewardship and ongoing engagement for principal gift donors, coordinating with colleagues across the university to deliver meaningful and individualized donor experiences.
• Oversee the development of donor correspondence, briefing materials, proposals, reports, and other communications that support fundraising strategies and solicitation efforts.
• Maintain current knowledge of university priorities and accurately document prospect activity, fundraising strategies, and solicitation outcomes.

About Alumni Affairs and Development

At Cornell Alumni Affairs and Development, we connect alumni, parents, and friends with opportunities to make a meaningful difference at Cornell and beyond. Our success is built on the strength of relationships, a commitment to excellence, and a culture of collaboration, innovation, inclusion, and continuous learning. As one of higher education's leading fundraising and engagement organizations, we recently completed a record-setting campaign that engaged more than 221K alumni and raised $6.7 billion. Joining our team means growing your career alongside supportive, mission-driven, and high-performing colleagues while helping shape Cornell's future.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and 10+ years of progressively responsible fundraising experience, including the cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of major and principal gift prospects, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Demonstrated success securing significant philanthropic commitments from high-net-worth individuals.
• Experience managing complex donor portfolios and developing individualized fundraising strategies.
• Proven ability to partner effectively with senior academic leaders, faculty, administrators, trustees, and volunteers.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to develop compelling donor proposals, presentations, and correspondence.
• Strong relationship-building, negotiation, and interpersonal skills.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple priorities and work effectively in a complex and collaborative environment.
• Proficiency with fundraising databases, Microsoft Office applications, and related technologies.
• Ability and willingness to travel frequently and work evenings and weekends as needed.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience securing seven- and eight-figure philanthropic commitments.
• Experience fundraising within higher education or another complex nonprofit environment.
• Familiarity with principal gift fundraising strategies and donor engagement practices.

Work Location

• This position is eligible for a hybrid work arrangement. Employees typically perform this role remotely three (3) days per week and on campus two (2) days per week. The university reserves the right to modify, suspend, revoke, or terminate the hybrid work arrangement at any time.

Rewards and Benefits

• Cornell receives national recognition as an award-winning workplace for our health, wellbeing, and sustainability.
• Our benefits programs include comprehensive health care options, generous retirement contributions, access to wellness programs, and employee discounts with local and national retail brands. We invite you to follow this link to get more information about our benefits: Understand Your Benefits | Working at Cornell.
• Our leave provisions include health and personal leave, three weeks of vacation and 13 holidays: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and the day after, and an end of the year winter break from December 25-January 1. To offer greater flexibility for observing faiths and traditions we also offer two additional floating holidays. Learn more about our generous leave provisions: Holiday and Accrued Time Off | Working at Cornell
• Cornell's impressive educational benefits include tuition-free Extramural Study and Employee Degree Program, tuition aid for external education, and Cornell Children's Tuition Assistance Program. Learn more about our extensive educational benefits: Education Benefits | Working at Cornell
• Follow this link to learn more about the Total Rewards of Working at Cornell: Total Rewards | Working at Cornell.

Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

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About Us

Cornell University is an innovative Ivy League university and a great place to work. Our inclusive community of scholars, students and staff impart an uncommon sense of larger purpose and contribute creative ideas to further the university's mission of teaching, discovery and engagement. With our main campus located in Ithaca, NY, Cornell's far-flung global presence includes the medical college's campuses on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and Doha, Qatar, as well as the Cornell Tech campus located on Roosevelt Island in the heart of New York City.

We offer a rich array of services, programs and benefits to help employees advance in their career and enhance the quality of personal life, including employee wellness, workshops, childcare and adoption assistance, parental leave and flexible work options.