About the California Academy of Sciences
The California Academy of Sciences is a globally renowned scientific and cultural institution located in the heart of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. Home to a world-class planetarium, aquarium, research center, and natural history museum—all under one living roof—our mission is to regenerate the natural world through science, learning, and collaboration.
Our extensive collections span plants, animals, fossils, and cultural artifacts from across the globe and throughout history. We are a diverse team of leading biodiversity scientists, educators, storytellers, designers, and communicators who work collaboratively to advance knowledge and inspire action through science and storytelling.
When you join the California Academy of Sciences, you become part of a mission-driven community that values curiosity, collaboration, and innovation. Whether you're working behind the scenes in research or engaging the public on the museum floor, your work will help connect people to the natural world and empower them to protect it.
Join a team dedicated to the Academy’s mission, vision, and values , and committed to executing a new strategic plan that will strengthen the organization's financial foundations, cultivate a vibrant internal culture, and foster disciplined, mission-driven growth that will secure the Academy’s future.
About the Opportunity
The Leadership Gifts Officer / Senior Leadership Gifts Officer is a seasoned frontline fundraiser responsible for a robust portfolio of high-net-worth donors and prospects, with a focus on securing and stewarding major and principal gifts. The role leads complex identification, cultivation and solicitation strategies, partners closely with Advancement Leadership, staff, and Leadership Philanthropy team as well as Academy program leaders to design high-impact donor experiences, and models best practices that strengthen a donor-centered, data-informed culture across the division.
Primary Responsibilities
Primary responsibilities will be appropriate to the level and title; the below describes the responsibilities for Senior Leadership Gifts Officer. The Academy’s Talent Acquisition representative will be able to provide the Leadership Gifts Officer Job Description should you meet those qualifications.
Portfolio Management & Fundraising
Manage a portfolio of 70-90 donors and prospects, with emphasis on leadership (six-figure) and principal gifts (seven-figure +).
Independently develop and execute tailored cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies for each donor and prospect.
Consistently secure gifts of $100,000+ , prioritizing unrestricted flexible support as well as advancing priorities across biodiversity science, environmental learning, and conservation.
Regularly identify and cultivate opportunities for upgrading donor gifts from five to six-figure gifts.
Maintain disciplined moves management, forecasting, and pipeline documentation and reporting in Tessitura.
Identify pipeline development opportunities with internal stakeholders and partners to advance high-potential donors and prospects into the leadership gift pipeline.
Donor Engagement & Events
Serve as primary relationship manager for select high-profile donors, supporters, and prospects.
Deliver bespoke, high-touch experiences—behind-the-scenes tours, lab/collections visits, field and site visits—that deepen affinity and accelerate giving.
Collaborate with Donor Experience and Communications teams to provide personalized, timely stewardship touchpoints and impact reporting.
The work schedule varies, with long hours during critical periods and special events, such as Academy Day, Big Bang, and SuperNatural fundraising events. This job requires occasional in-person event support on evenings and weekends, which may fall outside of normal business hours.
Cross-Functional Collaboration & Experiences
Partner with scientists and program leads to align donor interests with mission-critical work; translate complex initiatives into compelling donor offers.
Collaborate with the Donor Experience team to plan and execute curated on-site and field-based activations that advance cultivation and stewardship goals.
Work with Advancement Operations to leverage data, dashboards, and reporting that inform strategy and drive results.
Collaborate with Legacy Giving team to identify prospects for the Eastwood Associates and create custom solicitations for blended gifts.
Deepen relationships with well-cultivated new prospects following initial engagement by the Advancement Coordinator, Advancement Research Manager, or Direct Response fundraising team.
Internal Leadership & Strategy
Partner with the Director of Leadership Philanthropy and the Associate Director of Leadership Philanthropy to provide input on donor strategy goal-setting for the division.
Identify potential board candidates and help lead them toward deeper engagement and philanthropy.
Model donor-centered communication, rigorous planning, and cross-team collaboration; serve as a mentor and fundraising strategy expert for wider division, reviewing approaches and coaching on donor conversations.
Represent Leadership Philanthropy in internal meetings as needed, contributing to seamless coordination across Advancement and program teams.
Qualifications
Leadership Gifts Officer: 2+ years of relevant frontline fundraising experience or equivalent high-level relationship management, with a track record of securing $50,000+ gifts.
Senior Leadership Gifts Officer: 6+ years of frontline fundraising or equivalent high-level relationship management, with a track record of securing $100,000+ gifts.
Demonstrated success managing a robust major-donor portfolio, including gift forecasting and closing complex, multi-stakeholder solicitations.
Experience with complicated gift vehicles such as DAFs, stock/security donations, and family foundations.
Capital or comprehensive campaign experience welcomed.Experience partnering with executive leadership and board members on solicitations.
Exceptional relationship-building and communication skills; poised and effective with high-profile donors and institutional leaders.
Experience designing and executing bespoke donor engagements (tours, field visits, events) tied to program impact.
Strong organizational and project-management skills; adept at prioritizing across multiple donors, deadlines, and partners.
Proficiency with fundraising CRMs and reporting (Tessitura preferred); data-driven approach to strategy and forecasting.
Collaborative, generous teammate with a coaching mindset; committed to sharing practices that strengthen team culture.
Deep interest in the Academy’s mission; familiarity with science, climate, conservation, or museum philanthropy is a plus.
Framing for Officer / Senior Leadership Gifts Officer
The Leadership Gifts Officer is a frontline fundraiser who drives revenue growth by securing support and delivering high-impact donor experiences that reflect the Academy’s mission. They regularly secure gifts of $50,000+ and identify and cultivate donors to grow from five to six-figure gifts. In addition to managing donor relationships, the Gifts Officer contributes to team strategy and pipeline development, partners across departments to align donor passion with program ambition, and models a disciplined, donor-first approach.
The Senior Leadership Gifts Officer is a seasoned frontline fundraiser who drives revenue growth by securing transformational support, upgrading donors from five to six-figure gifts, and delivering high-impact donor experiences that reflect the Academy’s mission. In addition to managing significant donor relationships, the Senior Officer contributes to team strategy and pipeline development, partners across departments to align donor passion with program ambition, and models a disciplined, donor-first approach. This role expands the Leadership Philanthropy team’s capacity, enabling the Director and Associate Director of Leadership Philanthropy to focus on top-tier strategy and portfolios while maintaining seamless operations and momentum across the major gifts program.
Organizational Culture
Join a team dedicated to the Academy’s mission, vision and values! Currently, the Academy has a new strategic plan including three initiatives – Hope for Reefs , Thriving California , and Islands 2030 – that leverage biodiversity science, environmental learning, and collaborative engagement to regenerate fragile ecosystems around the world. Learn more at https://www.calacademy.org/about-us/major-initiatives .
We hope you are inspired by what we do and are excited to contribute to our mission. The mission of the California Academy of Sciences is to regenerate the natural world through science, learning, and collaboration. The Academy is looking for candidates who do great work, and we know they may come from a number of different backgrounds and experiences. We encourage you to apply even if you do not believe you meet every qualification for the position.
This position is based in San Francisco, California. The specific onsite/hybrid schedule for this position is listed below.
Key Responsibilities
Portfolio Management & Fundraising
Manage a portfolio of 90–100 donors and prospects, with emphasis on leadership and principal gifts.
Independently develop and execute tailored cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies for each prospect.
Consistently secure gifts of $25K+ , advancing priorities across biodiversity science, environmental learning, and conservation.
Maintain disciplined moves management, forecasting, and pipeline reporting in Tessitura.
Donor Engagement & Stewardship
Serve as primary relationship manager for select high-profile donors and supporters.
Deliver bespoke, high-touch experiences—behind-the-scenes tours, lab/collections visits, field and site visits—that deepen affinity and accelerate giving.
Coordinate with Donor Relations, Events, and Communications to provide personalized, timely stewardship touchpoints and impact reporting.
Cross- Functional Collaboration & Experiences
Partner with scientists and program leads to align donor interests with mission-critical work; translate complex initiatives into compelling donor offers.
Collaborate with the Advancement Events team on curated on-site and field-based activations that advance cultivation and stewardship goals.
Work with Advancement Operations to leverage data, dashboards, and reporting that inform strategy and drive results.
Pipeline Development
Qualify and advance high-potential prospects into the major/principal gift pipeline.
Deepen relationships with well-cultivated new prospects following initial engagement by the LP Coordinator and Leadership & Legacy Giving Officer.
Identify potential board and volunteer leadership candidates and help steward them toward deeper philanthropic engagement.
Internal Leadership & Strategy
Partner with the Director of LP and the Associate Director on select donor strategies.
Model donor-centered communication, rigorous planning, and cross-team collaboration; share tools and best practices that elevate team performance.
Represent LP in internal meetings as needed, contributing to seamless coordination across Advancement and program teams.
Qualifications: A successful candidate will have the following:
6+ years of frontline fundraising or equivalent high-level relationship management, with a track record of securing $25K+ gifts.
Demonstrated success managing a robust major-donor portfolio and closing complex, multi-stakeholder solicitations.
Exceptional relationship-building and communication skills; poised and effective with high-profile donors and institutional leaders.
Experience designing and executing bespoke donor engagements (tours, field visits, events) tied to program impact.
Strong organizational and project-management skills; adept at prioritizing across multiple donors, deadlines, and partners.
Proficiency with fundraising CRMs and reporting (Tessitura preferred); data-driven approach to strategy and forecasting.
Collaborative, generous teammate with a coaching mindset; committed to sharing practices that strengthen team culture.
Deep interest in the Academy’s mission; familiarity with science, climate, conservation, or museum philanthropy is a plus.
Physical Environment:
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to stand, sit, use a computer, and communicate on the phone, in person, and online meetings/calls. Must be able to perform repetitive motions 90% of the time.
Compensation and Benefits:
The salary range for this position is $90,000.00- $100,000.00. Actual compensation will be commensurate with the final candidate's qualifications and experience, including skills, knowledge, relevant education, certifications and aligned with the internal peer group. We believe in fair and equitable compensation practices and are committed to providing competitive salaries within the industry and market standards. The Academy offers a total compensation package that emphasizes both base salary and comprehensive benefits based on the hours per week worked. Further details regarding compensation and benefits will be discussed during the interview process.
Schedule : Full-Time/Hybrid 3 days onsite, 40 hours per week
How to Apply:
Interested candidates should submit a resume and application through our Careers Page portal.
The California Academy of Sciences will give full consideration for employment to all qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance (SF Police Code, Article 49).