Application Guide
How to Apply for Director of Development
at Educated Choices Program
🏢 About Educated Choices Program
Educated Choices Program (ECP) is a food systems education nonprofit that provides free, professionally produced video-based lessons to schools and institutions, reaching over 3.8 million learners in 80+ countries. It holds top ratings like Candid's Platinum Transparency Seal and a 4-star Charity Navigator rating, and is a recognized nutrition education provider for NYC public schools. Working here means joining a mission-driven team at the intersection of education, health, environment, and animal welfare, with a fully remote and flexible culture.
About This Role
This is a new Director of Development role focused on building ECP's first individual-giving and major-gift program, reporting directly to the Founder & CEO. You will design and execute strategies to identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward individual donors, with the potential to grow a development team. Your work will directly fuel ECP's expansion of free educational resources to millions more learners.
💡 A Day in the Life
A typical day might involve researching and qualifying new major-gift prospects, drafting personalized outreach, and meeting virtually with the Founder & CEO to strategize donor engagement. You could also spend time stewarding existing donors through personalized updates, planning donor events or webinars, and analyzing fundraising data to refine your approach. As the program grows, you might begin interviewing or mentoring a development associate.
🚀 Application Tools
🎯 Who Educated Choices Program Is Looking For
- Proven track record in major gifts fundraising (5+ years), including direct solicitation of five- and six-figure gifts from individuals.
- Experience building or scaling an individual-giving program from the ground up, ideally in a nonprofit with a national or global reach.
- Strong affinity for ECP's mission around food systems education, health, environment, and animal welfare, with the ability to articulate that passion to donors.
- Self-motivated and entrepreneurial, comfortable working remotely and reporting to a founder-CEO in a fast-paced, evolving environment.
📝 Tips for Applying to Educated Choices Program
Use the provided Google Form link (https://forms.gle/m4TwuVHtxshCyNoq8) to apply, and submit before October 16, 2026 for priority consideration—applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, so earlier is better.
In your cover letter or form responses, explicitly state your experience building a major-gift or individual-giving program from scratch, since this is a new position and ECP is looking for a builder.
Highlight any fundraising experience in education, food systems, health, environment, or animal advocacy nonprofits, as ECP's mission sits at the intersection of these areas.
Demonstrate your ability to work remotely and independently by mentioning past remote work successes and your familiarity with fundraising CRM tools and virtual stewardship strategies.
Show that you've researched ECP's specific programs, such as their 20+ education packages and reach of 3.8 million learners, and explain how you would translate that impact into compelling donor cases for support.
✉️ What to Emphasize in Your Cover Letter
1) Your concrete experience launching or growing an individual-giving program, including specific metrics (e.g., funds raised, donor retention). 2) Your passion for ECP's mission and how you would convey that authentically to donors. 3) Your ability to work directly with a founder-CEO and thrive in a remote, entrepreneurial setting. 4) Your vision for the first 12–18 months of ECP's individual-giving program, showing strategic thinking and quick wins.
Generate Cover Letter →🔍 Research Before Applying
To stand out, make sure you've researched:
- → Explore ECP's website to understand their 20+ education packages, video content, and lesson plans, and note which topics might resonate most with donors.
- → Review ECP's key accolades, such as being a Keeling Curve Prize Laureate, a finalist for the 2026 Climate Curve Prize: Methane, and their Candid Platinum Transparency Seal, to use in donor conversations.
- → Research the Founder & CEO's background, public statements, and vision for ECP to understand how you'd partner with them in fundraising.
- → Look into ECP's current funding sources (e.g., grants, institutional support) and identify gaps where individual giving could make a difference.
💬 Prepare for These Interview Topics
Based on this role, you may be asked about:
⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Submitting a generic cover letter that doesn't mention ECP's mission or the specific challenge of building an individual-giving program from scratch.
- Focusing only on grant writing or institutional fundraising, since this role is explicitly about major gifts and individual giving.
- Failing to demonstrate remote work proficiency or the ability to work autonomously, as ECP is fully remote and values self-starters.
📅 Application Timeline
This position is open until filled. However, we recommend applying as soon as possible as roles at mission-driven organizations tend to fill quickly.
Typical hiring timeline:
Application Review
1-2 weeks
Initial Screening
Phone call or written assessment
Interviews
1-2 rounds, usually virtual
Offer
Congratulations!
Ready to Apply?
Good luck with your application to Educated Choices Program!