Analyst, Advancement Finance & Operations

Salary: $65,384 - $88,000, depending on experience & qualifications

Position Summary

Reporting to the Executive Director of Stewardship and Advancement Services, the Advancement Finance and Operations Analyst will ensure the seamless tracking, compliance, and financial integrity of philanthropic revenue and commitments, enabling the institution to effectively steward donor intent while empowering strategic decision-making through accurate forecasting and reporting. Additionally, this role will manage Institutional Advancement operational budget, tracking expenditures and revenue, and ensuring the office operates within the allocated budget.

Our generous benefits package includes medical, dental, and vision plans; paid parental leave; short term and long term disability plans; life insurance; flexible spending accounts; and a 403(b) retirement plan which includes a 8% employer contribution after 2 years of service. RFUMS is committed to employee wellbeing and work-life balance. Full time staff are eligible for 3 weeks of vacation/ personal leave, 15 sick days, and 9 paid holidays, paid winter break, plus two floating holidays.

**This position is eligible forhybridwork (telecommuting) which includes working on-site at our office in North Chicago at least 1 day per week.**

Who We Are

Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science (RFU) is named for a pioneer in scientific research. In 1952, British scientist and researcher Dr. Rosalind Franklin altered humankind's understanding of biology. Her work in X-ray diffraction during the preceding years helped her capture "Photograph 51" of the "B" form of DNA while at King's College in London. This discovery directly led to the development of the double-helix model of DNA that same year.

Today, we are carrying her legacy forward by sustaining an innovative, collaborative environment for advanced healthcare education and research. We do that through a combination of rigorous academics, with interprofessionalism as a foundation; advancements in health, wellness and medicine at our Innovation and Research Park; and groundbreaking approaches to community service.

Our beautiful 97-acre campus is located in North Chicago, Illinois, approximately 35 miles north of downtown Chicago. We offer graduate-level health degrees through our six specialized schools: Chicago Medical School, College of Health Professions, College of Nursing, College of Pharmacy, Dr. William M. Scholl College of Podiatric Medicine, School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies; and provide compassionate patient care through our RFU Health Clinics, Community Care Connection (mobile clinic) and Interprofessional Community Clinics (student run clinic)..

RFU provides a purpose-driven, community-focused place where students, faculty, staff, practitioners, researchers and entrepreneurs converge around a common goal: improve the quality and delivery of health and wellness for all. By embodying our namesake's traits of inquiry, diligence and academic excellence, we are continuing to shape the future of health care. Come to RFU and be a part of it.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities

Gift, Grant and Registration Processing

• Accurately input and process all types of gifts, pledges, grants and event registration payments via the institution's CRM and resources planning platform (e.g., Raiser's Edge, Ellucian Colleague).
• Assign appropriate general ledge revenue account and reconcile batches in coordination with RFU Finance.
• Support timely receipting/acknowledgements, maintenance of donor records, pledge fulfillments and resolve gift-related inquiries.
• Maintain up-to-date gift agreement templates, and provide review and guidance to gift officers as new gifts are documented.
• Administer gift and grant agreement documentation, including endowments and restricted funds, working with finance to allocate fund spending, ensuring compliance of fund spend with donor intent, and collaborating with stewardship leads to ensure consistent reporting to donors.
• Oversee portfolio of donor platforms to maximize charitable giving and donor engagement experience.

Fund Auditing & Reconciliation

• Perform daily/weekly/monthly reconciliation between gift sub-ledger and general ledger, investigating discrepancies promptly

• Prepare for internal and external audits and reports; liaise with Finance, Student Financial Services, and collegiate/program fund accountability partners
• Updates and maintains contact information for campus-wide fund accountability partners.
• Maintain compliance with philanthropy, accounting & financial controls related to grants and gifts.
• Serves as a resource to faculty and staff by providing guidance on financial, gift, and compliance policies; May occasionally engage with donors to clarify fund usage and policy alignment.

Financial Forecasting & Reporting

• Assist in the development of budget projections and forecasts for grant-funded and donor-supported funds.
• Assists with compiling, analyzing, and monitoring data related to donor-supported funds to identify areas of risk; Helps produces routine and ad hoc customized reports.
• Create regular financial and trend analysis reports for leadership, sponsors, and compliance (e.g., CASE, IRS 990, gift activity reports).
• Use data to inform strategies around fundraising performance and peer benchmarks.

Process Improvement & Compliance

• Partner in developing and updating policies/procedures around gift acceptance, fund accounting, and regulatory compliance, ensuring alignment with institutional need, donor intent, institutional policies, and legal and regulatory requirements.
• Ensure adherence to IRS charitable rules, PCI-DSS standards, CASE protocols, State Registration of Charitable Solicitation and other internal controls
• Identify opportunities for system/process enhancements and support training for staff.

Operational Budget

• Manage Institutional Advancement division budget, process purchase orders, check requests, cash advances, reimbursements, credit card purchases and credit card reconciliation (WorkDay, Concur.
• Collaborate with Finance to ensure financial integrity, daily balancing, monthly and annual reconciliation and accurate budgeting processing
• Assists in the construction of the annual budget and other activity reports to staff.
• Coordinate all vendor contracts and service agreements.

Collaboration & Support

• Serve as a liaison between Institutional Advancement, Finance, Student Financial Aid Services and other campus partners on gift administration and accountability.
• Provide donor-facing support regarding gift status and fund details.
• Support seasonal initiatives (e.g., campaign close, fiscal year-end), including event support and extended hours when needed.

Conditions of Employment

• Must achieve satisfactory results from a background check

Required Education & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in finance, accounting, business, nonprofit management, or related field.
• 3+ years in higher education or nonprofit gift/grant administration, accounting, or advancement services.

Required Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities

Technical Skills:

• CRM experience (Raiser's Edge NXT, Ellucian Colleague, Salesforce).
• Strong Excel skills, including formulas, sorting, filtering, pivot tables.
• Familiarity with financial systems.
• Understanding of GAAP fund accounting.

Compliance Knowledge:

• IRS charitable gift regulations, CASE reporting standards.
• PCI-DSS, payroll deduction protocols, gift agreement oversight.

Skills:

• Excellent attention to detail, analytical ability, and organizational skills.
• Strong written/oral communication and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to meet deadlines under pressure and work independently.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with non-cash and complex gifts (e.g., gifts- in-kind, donor advises funds, securities).
• Familiarity with audit preparation and financial forecasting.
• Exposure to philanthropy donor stewardship.
• Project management or system implementation contributions.

Typical Physical Demands & Working Conditions

• Selected candidate must have the mental and physical capabilities to perform the essential functions of the position with or without reasonable accommodations.

EOE, Including Disability / Vets