Director of External Affairs

Position: Director of External Affairs
Reports To: President & Chief Executive Officer
FLSA Status: Full-time (40 hours), exempt, salaried
Salary: $60,000-$70,000 annually, dependent on experience
Direct Reports: Development Manager
Director of External Relations, part-time role
Brand Storyteller (indirect)
Creative Media Intern (indirect)
Work Environment: Hybrid. Virtual/remote administrative work. Expected attendance at performances,
special events, and other external activities.

Mission and Background
Musicopia's mission is to inspire, educate, and connect children, youth, and their extended communities
through collaborative music and dance experiences. Musicopia envisions shaping and empowering the next
generation through equitable access to the arts: cultivating lifelong creative expression, confidence,
collaboration, multicultural understanding, and joy.

This will be guided and informed by our belief in and commitment to our values, which are to:
• Provide pathways to the arts
• Inspire learning through the arts
• Champion cultural and human diversity
• Promote the development of self-efficacy
• Create environments of mutual respect, well-being, and belonging
• Support participants in finding safe spaces for self-expression
• Enrich the communities in which our participants live and thrive

As of January 1, 2026, Musicopia and long-time affiliate Musicopia Dance (formerly Dancing Classrooms Philly) merged with Musicopia Inc as the surviving entity. This strategic merger brings to the forefront the importance of dance to youth development, while continuing to champion the power of music. Learn more about Musicopia’s work and impact at www.musicopia.org.

Position Description
In collaboration with the President & Chief Executive Officer, the Director of External Affairs leads Musicopia’s fundraising, institutional giving, marketing, communications, and community engagement efforts. This role is responsible for developing and implementing integrated fundraising and communications initiatives to grow contributed revenue, strengthen donor and funder relationships, elevate Musicopia’s visibility, and align external affairs activities with the organization’s mission, values, programs, and long-term sustainability. The Director serves as a frontline fundraiser, departmental leader, and key partner to staff and Board members in advancing Musicopia’s philanthropic and public engagement goals.

Key Responsibilities
Leadership
• Develop and implement a written, metrics-driven Development Plan with clear goals, timelines, and assigned responsibilities, in partnership with the President/CEO and Board leadership
• Work with the President/CEO, staff, and Board to identify, cultivate, and steward individual, corporate,
foundation, and government prospects
• Serve as staff liaison to the Board’s Development and Marketing Committee and provide regular updates on
fundraising progress, priorities, and opportunities
• Manage department staff through clear goals, coaching, collaboration, and ongoing professional development
 

Contributed Revenue
• Oversee donor and prospect activity across individual and institutional giving, including cultivation, solicitation, stewardship, and tracking
• Guide major gift and sponsorship strategies through prospect research, prioritization, solicitation planning, and support for staff and Board engagement
• Oversee giving opportunities, campaigns, and special events that deepen donor relationships and support
revenue growth
• Attend fundraising, corporate, and cultivation events throughout the year, including occasional weekends and evenings
 

Grants and Institutional Giving
• Oversee the full grant lifecycle, including prospect research, calendar management, proposal development, submission, award administration, compliance, reporting, and funder stewardship
• Write, edit, and/or oversee grant proposals, letters of inquiry, reports, project budgets, organizational narratives, and supporting materials
• Partner with program, finance, and communications staff to gather data, align budgets, monitor deliverables, maintain accurate records, and fulfill funder recognition requirements
 

Development Operations
• Oversee development operations, including Salesforce, gift processing, acknowledgements, calendars, prospect tracking, campaign activity, and revenue reporting
• Work with Finance to set the annual contributed revenue budget and ensure proper accounting for donations, grants, and sponsorships
• Strengthen development operations through continuous improvement, best practices, and compliance with
internal and external requirements
 

Communications/Community Engagement
• Coordinate marketing and communications plans that support organizational priorities, fundraising goals, program visibility, and community engagement
• Guide clear, mission-aligned storytelling across social media, email marketing, advertising, direct mail, press
releases, website content, donor communications, campaign messaging, and other external-facing materials
• Build relationships with community leaders, funders, arts and culture partners, public officials, and other constituents to strengthen Musicopia’s visibility and partnerships

Other duties as assigned by the President & CEO

Qualifications
• Bachelor’s Degree preferred (certificate in nonprofit fundraising or degree in nonprofit administration
highly desirable)
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in development
• Exceptional oral and written communication and interpersonal skills, including ability to edit and write clearly and succinctly with strategic messaging
• Demonstrated leadership and relationship-building skills and the ability to work well with diverse groups
• Proven success in grant writing and management, corporate giving, government support, institutional funder stewardship, and special events (understanding of, and experience with, planned giving a plus)
• Experience overseeing marketing and communications, including press releases, email marketing, social media, website content, campaign messaging, and brand-aligned storytelling
• Experience managing grant calendars, institutional funding pipelines, proposal and report deadlines, funder communications, and cross-departmental information gathering processes
• Working mastery of technology tools including presentation applications, Microsoft Word, Excel, and CRM donor management platforms. Experience with leveraging AI in the development process a plus
• Experienced in managing and fostering staff development highly preferred

Personal/Professional Experiences
• Self-starter
• Customer service oriented
• Entrepreneurial, innovative, and process-oriented
• Able to work independently and collaboratively
• Sense of duty and commitment to guiding and helping the team meet fundraising, grant,
communications, and community engagement goals and deadlines
• Attuned to managing sensitive relationships and confidential information
• Passion for the arts and arts education
• Commitment to the values inherent in diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility
• Commitment to social justice and empowering students through the arts