Background

Tongabezi Trust School (TTS) is a community-rooted institution committed to delivering high quality inclusive education, promoting child safeguarding, and advancing skills development and tertiary learning opportunities through its mission “to serve rural and vulnerable children and adults of Simonga community by providing inclusive, holistic and high-quality education, skills development and employment opportunities’.

The Opportunity:

We are excited to be expanding our Fundraising & Administration Team to increase the development of our education programs across Tujatane and Twaabane Creative Center. We are seeking a motivated, creative and passionate individual who is looking to apply their exceptional writing and relationship-building skills to the dynamic educational environment at Tongabezi Trust School.

Job Title: Grants, Fundraising and Communications Coordinator

Reports to: Fundraising & Admin Manager                                                

Experience & Qualifications:

Required:

·      Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration,Public Relations,Project Management,Development studies or any related field

·      Minimum five years of relevant work experience in a similar field

·      Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English

·      Proven track record of successful international grant applications and awards

·      Experience in donor reporting, including collaboration with other departments to gather financial and programmatic information to ensure accurate reporting

·      Experience in social media management and marketing, including photo and video editing 

·      Strong organizational, time management, research and analytical skillswith a high standard of attention to detail

·      Ability to think creatively to solve complex problems

·      Proficient in MS office suite

·      Able to work independently and as a member of the team

·      Experience in monitoring & evaluation and data analysis

·      Able to manage a highly varied and busy workload, in a demanding setting

·      Community engagement experience considered an asset

·      Conversational skills in Tonga, Nyanja or Lozi considered an asset

Personal qualities:

·      Easily adaptable to new environments

·      A quick learner

·      Ready to contribute wherever needed

·      Passionate about education and community empowerment projects

Key Responsibilities: 

Donor Research and Identification: 

·      Lead on researching potential grant opportunities from government agencies, foundations, and other sources that align with the organisation’s mission and fundraising strategy, and submit to Fundraising Manager for approval.

·      Maintain a comprehensive database of grant opportunities, deadlines, and requirements. 

·      Communicate with Fundraising & Administration Manager and other SLT on upcoming proposal and report deadlines.

Proposal Development:

·      Prepare high-quality grant proposals, including budgets, narratives, and supporting documentation. 

·      Collaborate with all departments to gather relevant information and ensure proposals are aligned with the organisation’s mission, aims and values.

·      Ensure timely and accurate submission of grant applications to the Fundraising & Administration Manager for final review and submission.

·      Utilize organisational data to support statistical components of grant proposals.

Donor Reporting:

·      Support Fundraising & Administration Manager on reporting and restricted funds management.

·      Compile information from internal reports, and work closely with the Senior Leadership team to obtain information on relevant activities, achievements, and challenges.

·      Complete high quality grant reports for review by the Fundraising & Administration Manager 

·      Lead on basic monitoring and evaluation of organisational data to support grant and donor reporting requirements

Managing Relationships with Existing and Potential Donors:

• Assist the Fundraising team in ensuring donors receive timely and appropriate communication.
• Ensure all donor feedback is personalized, relevant, and engaging.
• Gather and produce photo and video content to provide meaningful feedback for donations.
• Support the Fundraising and Administration Manager in tracking all communication with major and minor donors and ensuring appropriate follow-up.
• Work with the Fundraising and Administration Manager to curate personalized school and center tours and develop a program of events.
• Work with the Fundraising team to ensure termly sponsor updates are completed at the end of each term.
• Assist the Fundraising and Administration Manager in planning and managing fundraising events.

Communications:

·      Support the Fundraising & Administration Manager with developing social media content, including capturing and editing photos and videos, writing social media posts, and contributing to the development of newsletters.

·      Collect and curate impact stories that highlight successes, crafting compelling content for various platforms.

·      Update and enhance the website to maximize positive publicity, provide information to supporters, and encourage donations.

·      Utilize Vimeo to create and share video updates for donors.

·      Assist the fundraising team in creating targeted marketing materials for various events.

·      Ensure all marketing materials are consistently updated and maintained.

Volunteer Program:

·     Coordinate the organisation’s volunteer program, serving as the primary point of contact for volunteers before, and during their visits.

·    Communicate with prospective and confirmed volunteers to provide information, answer queries, and ensure a smooth on-boarding process

·    Coordinate schedules, activities, and placements for volunteers during their stay to maximize impact and ensure alignment with organisational needs.

·    Collaborate with relevant departments to ensure volunteers are supported and integrated into school and center activities.