Join our award-winning newsroom

MLK50: Justice Through Journalism is an award-winning nonprofit digital news site based in Memphis, Tennessee. Our mission is to report on the intersection of poverty, power and policy and to bear witness to movement-making and lived experiences. We examine the systems that make it hard for workers to make ends meet and interrogate those who profit from the status quo. Our goal is to help Memphians — especially workers — have enough resources to thrive and demand that public and private policy support their success. We strive for our newsroom culture to reflect the values we prize: community, accountability, courage and justice.

We are seeking an organized, committed, and innovative Development Manager to support the planning and implementation of MLK50’s revenue strategies, with an emphasis on grants and individual donors, to match the organization’s values and ensure our long-term sustainability. The Development Manager will play a key role in helping us achieve our ambitious revenue goals while supporting our strong editorial independence.

The Development Manager will work closely with our Development Director and Co-Executive Director of Business, who will lead their onboarding and provide support in all revenue projects. They will be expected to work closely with an array of stakeholders, including MLK50’s advisory board, donors, foundation partners and contractors. 

This is a full-time, exempt position that will report to the Development Director.

Essential Duties: 

Donor Support

• Support year-round individual and major giving efforts in addition to quarterly fundraising campaigns by coordinating and producing donor communications, including: fundraising appeals; acknowledgement letters; handwritten thank yous; holiday cards; invitations, reminders and follow-ups. 
• Manage the day-to-day maintenance of our CRM platform, including: maintaining our regular donation page, creating dynamic and campaign-specific pages, responding to donor inquiries, updating donor records, and troubleshooting payment errors.
• Conduct preliminary research to build a pipeline of major donors (including individuals, corporations and public agencies) and foundation prospects.
• Compiling donor data for required year-end reporting.
• Assist with the coordination of donor engagement and fundraising events, including: creating appeals, identifying target audiences, sending invites, preparing guest lists, and coordinating with vendors and sponsors.
• Assist with the creation of a yearly fundraising calendar and the implementation of our high-level development plan. 

Grant Support

• Serve as the lead grant writer who manages applications and reports, including: LOIs, concept notes, narratives, financials and other information. 
• Manage the grants calendar to ensure deadlines and compliance with grant agreements are met, and necessary input from relevant MLK50 staff is acquired.  
• Assist with tracking grant deliverables and collecting data for grant reports.

Additional Financial Tracking and Data Management

• Track campaign goals/progress.
• Track new, recurring and canceled donations and steward them along the relationship continuum accordingly.
• Learn, implement and oversee best practices for donor and prospect data management.
• Handle and track pledges, invoices, sponsorship contributions and offline donation deposits. 
• Support the development director with monthly and quarterly revenue reconciliations and reports. 

Community Engagement Support

• Working with the Community Engagement Manager, plan and host events intended to connect the community with MLK50’s work and reporters. 
• Support social media strategy that engages and informs the community, with a focus on inviting readers/potential supporters into the donor pipeline.
• Collaborate on audience and community surveys/canvassing to bring insight from readers back to the development team

Other duties as assigned. 

The Ideal Candidate is: 

• Experienced: You have at least four years of experience in nonprofit fundraising with an emphasis on writing compelling copy for a range of audiences, reports and campaigns.
• Knowledgeable: About donor engagement and research, fundraising platforms, donor CRMs, grants calendars, Mailchimp and other relevant fundraising technologies.
• Flexible: Nimble and able to pivot when priorities shift. Bring a can-do attitude to work.
• Collaborative: You know how to collect input, buy-in on projects you own while also contributing to the work of your teammates. 
• Mission-focused: Interested in joining a business team that is rethinking revenue, with an eye toward community-centric fundraising principles.
• Organized: All staff are expected to prioritize and balance multiple projects simultaneously.
• Curious: An eagerness to learn about MLK50 coverage areas and stay current on related Memphis and national news topics in order to shape our donor campaigns, grant applications, etc. 
• Committed: You keep abreast of social, racial and economic justice movements locally and nationally; you demonstrate an ongoing commitment to the cultural competency that matches MLK50’s mission.
• Courageous: You’re willing to disrupt charity narratives around nonprofit fundraising with a solidarity framework that interrupts the status quo.

Compensation & Benefits

 Salary starts at $70,000 and can increase based on experience. 

• $3,000 hiring bonus 
• At least 30 paid days off per year, including: 15 paid vacation days, 10 paid holidays per year, and two “dark” weeks, one in the spring and the other the week leading up to Labor Day.
• $1,000 annual professional development stipend
• Company credit card
• 100% employer-paid health insurance for the employee, 75% for dependents
• Company-supplied computer, phone
• Life insurance, long- and short-term disability insurance
• 4% employer 401K match 
• Annual cost-of-living raise, as budget allows

Work Environment

Location and Work Travel

Candidate is based in the Memphis metro area or is willing to relocate. Remote candidates will not be considered. The Development Manager may travel to represent MLK50 at conferences or other funder convenings. 

Physical Requirements/Work Environment

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the functions.

While performing the duties of this position, the employee is regularly required to talk and hear. The employee is frequently required to use hands or fingers, handle, or feel objects, tools or controls. The employee is often required to stand, walk, sit, reach with hands and arms, climb or balance, and stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this position include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, and the ability to adjust focus.

The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate. We are a hybrid newsroom.

To Apply

We are eager to learn more about you and how you fit this role. To apply, please submit the following:

1. Your résumé — one to two pages.

2. A cover letter that outlines how you would approach the job.

3. Three writing samples of original work. This can include: LOIs, grant applications/reports, correspondence with donors, or fundraising campaign language. The work should have minimal editing, and you should be the sole author.

Please email your application materials to hr@mlk50.com and put “Development Manager” in the subject line. The application process will remain open until the position is filled. 

MLK50: Justice Through Journalism is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, religion, national origin, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, disability, age, or any other category protected by local, state, or federal laws.