Overview

GATEWAY PUBLIC SCHOOLS

In 1998, a group of San Francisco parents had the dream of creating a school that would be a gateway to college for all students regardless of race, income or learning style. They founded Gateway High School, a college preparatory, public charter school in San Francisco. Since then, more than 98% of its graduates have gone on to college, nearly twice the statewide rate. Expanding on its success, Gateway Middle School was established in 2011 to support students starting in 6th grade. Today, Gateway’s mission is to prepare a broad range of learners for success in college and beyond by combining a rigorous academic program with an approach where the individual talents, strengths and needs of its learners are identified and supported. With two campuses in San Francisco’s Western Addition, Gateway Public Schools (GPS) serves nearly 800 students and an entire community of educators each year. Learn more about Gateway schools at www.gatewayps.org. 

POSITION OVERVIEW

Gateway Public Schools seeks an enthusiastic and detail-oriented Events Associate with a commitment to public education, students and families, and the San Francisco community. This role is responsible for fundraising event logistics and operations, corporate partnerships and our Ambassador Board, Gateway’s alumni council. 

This is a full-time, exempt, in-person position (remote Wednesdays after onboarding). Gateway’s offices are located on Gateway High’s campus in Western Addition. The development team’s office is on the second floor of the building. The building has stairs, a ramp, and elevator to access the second floor. The office is close to several MUNI lines, and Gateway offers onsite parking for $50 per school year. 

REPORTING RELATIONSHIPS

This position currently reports to the Chief Development Officer (CDO), and will transition to reporting to the Associate Director of Development when this role is hired. The development team includes the CDO, Associate Director of Development, Senior Communications Manager, Grants Manager, and Development Associate, Operations.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES

We have outlined both the experience and qualifications a candidate should currently possess, and also those they are expected to develop while at Gateway. We recognize that no one person will be equally strong in every area and that some candidates will bring other strengths or experiences we haven’t described here. 

Fundraising Events (80%)

  • Coordinate all pre-, day-of and post-event logistics and operations of Gateway’s fundraising and community-building events, including vendor relationships (venue, catering, rentals), in-kind donations, and volunteer recruitment
  • Coordinate post-event engagement strategies to support donor stewardship priorities
  • Work closely with the Associate Director to plan and track revenue and expenses, and to develop event programming and strategies to meet fundraising goals
  • Work with the Senior Communications Manager to develop collateral, email, social media, website updates, and other event marketing efforts
  • Provide hands-on assistance and coordination before, during and after events

Corporate Partnerships (10%)

  • Research, identify and steward corporate fundraising opportunities
  • Help create and facilitate corporate volunteer engagement opportunities

Alumni Relations (10%)

  • Support activities of the Ambassador Board, Gateway’s alumni council, including identifying opportunities for alumni to engage, get involved and give back to Gateway
  • Support alumni relations strategy by growing Gateway’s engaged community of graduates, including envisioning alumni presence on Gateway’s website and social media
  • Work with the Senior Communications Manager to leverage stories of Gateway alumni to raise awareness of Gateway’s impact on the graduate communities

Team and Organizational Support

  • Additional responsibilities according to the direction of the leadership team
  • Attend and represent Gateway Public Schools at networking events, speaking engagements, conferences, etc. including some evenings and weekends
  • Engage in the day-to-day life of Gateway Middle and Gateway High schools
  • Act as an anti-racist individual and team, challenge racism and actively change the policies, behaviors, and beliefs that perpetuate racist ideas and actions

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

  • 1-3 years of work experience, ideally in a fundraising position or nonprofit organization
  • The ideal candidate is ready to begin independent work on at least 50% of the job description and we anticipate providing more hands-on support, coaching and professional development training for the candidate to be successful
  • A commitment to public education and alignment with Gateway’s mission and values, as well as creating an anti-racist community for students and families 
  • Superior problem-solving abilities with acute attention to detail
  • Exceptional time-management and organizational skills, and ability to prioritize and manage multiple projects simultaneously and meet deadlines
  • Excellent written communication skills, and comfort with public speaking
  • Technical savvy with a variety of office technologies (e.g., Google Suite, Zoom) 
  • Ability to foster and maintain working relationships built on mutual trust and respect with parents, students, trustees, donors, alumni, and staff
  • Demonstrated ability and willingness to continuously acquire new competencies and accept new challenges

DEI AND ANTIRACIST COMMITMENT

Gateway is committed to creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. Gateway strongly encourages women, people of color, LGBTQ+ persons, and persons from other underrepresented groups to apply. Learn more about Gateway’s commitment to anti-racism and a pro-Black community here: www.gatewayps.org/gps/anti-racism