Director of Development

The Director of Development will lead Vox’s newsroom fundraising strategy, with a focus on cultivating and securing institutional support from foundations, philanthropic partners, and aligned donors. This position will work closely with editorial leaders to identify opportunities where philanthropy can support ambitious reporting projects, coverage areas, and audience engagement initiatives.

This role requires a deep understanding of both fundraising best practices, the philanthropic landscape, and the mission-driven nature of journalism. This Director will work with newsroom leaders to bring in new sources of grant funding to support Vox’s journalism, ensuring that funding opportunities align with Vox’s editorial independence and strategic goals.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

Fundraising & Strategy

• Develop and execute a newsroom-focused fundraising strategy to grow grant and philanthropic revenue.
• Identify and cultivate new funding prospects, with an emphasis on foundations and major donors who support journalism, democracy, civic engagement, and public education.
• Collaborate with editorial leadership to align fundraising priorities with newsroom initiatives.
• Work with leadership & finance to set annual fundraising goals and track progress

Grant Writing & Management

• Lead the grant application and reporting process, ensuring proposals clearly articulate Vox’s journalism goals and impact.
• Build a strong pipeline of funders interested in supporting Vox’s key coverage areas
• Partner with finance to develop accurate budgets and financial reporting for grants.
• Track grant deadlines, deliverables, and compliance requirements.
  
  

Relationship Building & Stewardship

• Serve as a key point of contact for funders and represent Vox in external philanthropic conversations, conferences, and events.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with program officers, foundation staff, and philanthropic leaders.
• Develop stewardship strategies to keep supporters engaged and informed about Vox’s journalism and its impact.

WHAT YOU'LL BRING

• 7–10 years of professional experience in fundraising/development, ideally within journalism, media, or mission-driven nonprofits.
• Proven success in securing six- and seven-figure grants from national foundations and major donors.
• Exceptional writing and storytelling skills, with the ability to translate newsroom priorities into compelling proposals.
• Strong attention to detail, with an ability to stay on top of multiple projects simultaneously, and coordinate cross-functional teams and stakeholders 
• Strong relationship-building skills and experience engaging high-level stakeholders.
• Strategic thinker who can balance long-term vision with day-to-day execution.
• Knowledge of & established relationships in the journalism and media funding ecosystem strongly preferred.
• Passion for Vox’s mission of helping audiences understand what really matter

If you think you have what it takes, but don't meet every single point in our job posting, please apply with a cover letter to let us know how you believe you can bring your unique skills to the Vox Media team or get in touch! We’ve hired chefs who became editors, DJs who became UX designers, and sommeliers who became writers.

WHERE YOU’LL WORK

This position is based in either Washington, DC, or New York, NY.

WHY VOX MEDIA?

WHAT WE OFFER

This is a permanent, full-time position. This job is benefits-eligible. We pride ourselves in providing comprehensive benefits to support all of our employees wherever they are in life. You can find more information about our benefits here.

OUR DEI+ COMMITMENT

Vox Media is committed to building an inclusive environment where everyone can show up as their authentic selves and create their best work. We recognize that great stories, platforms, products and services come from people with all manner of backgrounds and experiences. We recognize that our commitments require ongoing work and sustained attention, as well as adaptation to new insights and best practices. We keep ourdiversity data public for the sake of accountability, transparency and communication. Learn more about our valueshere, and our approach to corporate citizenshiphere. 

Vox Media is an Equal Opportunity Employer and qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, religion, disability, national origin, protected veteran status, age, or any other status protected by applicable national, federal, state, or local law. Vox Media will also consider all qualified applicants with criminal histories in accordance with applicable Fair Chance laws. We are also committed to providing reasonable accommodations as part of the application process to candidates with disabilities. If you require a reasonable accommodation as part of the application process, please contact our People & Culture team ([email protected]).

WHAT COMES NEXT

Our recruiting team will go through applications in a timely manner. Please note that our recruiting team will only contact you from @voxmedia.com email addresses, never via text message. Read more about how our recruiting team operates, and how to protect yourself from recruitment fraud,here.