What are the responsibilities and job description for the Major Gifts Officer, National Fundraising & Capital Campaign position at Meridian International Center?
Title: Major Gifts Officer, National Fundraising & Capital Campaign
Employment Status: Exempt
Salary: $160,000-180,000 — salary/bonuses commensurate with experience/performance
Supervisor Title: Associate Vice President, Institutional Advancement
Date Revised: August 2026
Meridian International Center empowers leaders to advance the next era of diplomacy. Our work is rooted in a simple but powerful idea—Open Diplomacy—the belief that diplomacy does not belong to governments alone. Business leaders, innovators, scientists, governors and mayors, artists, and athletes now stand on the front lines of global engagement. Through global leadership programs and education, Meridian equips these leaders with the insights, relationships, and networks they need strengthen America’s international partnerships and turn dialogue into lasting impact. Since 1960, Meridian’s historic Washington campus has served as a gateway between Washington and the world, engaging tens of thousands of leaders—including more than 180 who later became heads of state. Today, amid growing global complexity and division, Meridian’s mission has never been more urgent: to serve as a trusted, nonpartisan, and innovative partner that brings leaders together, accelerates solutions to shared challenges, and helps shape the future of American diplomacy. The Major Gifts Officer will play a pivotal role in shaping this future.
Summary of Position:
Meridian International Center is seeking a dynamic, experienced Major Gifts Officer to help lead the next phase of the organization's national fundraising growth, with its capital campaign as the primary focus of major-gift activity.
Working closely with the organization's leadership, the Major Gifts Officer will be responsible for raising $2 million in new philanthropic partnerships in the first year, with a focus on securing new 5-7 figure gifts from HNW individuals, family offices, and family foundations. Experience raising major gifts from the c-suite in the private sector a plus as is experience in foundation/corporate proposal writing. The role will expand Meridian's national network of philanthropic partners, with particular emphasis on New York City, the San Francisco Bay Area, and Washington, D.C.
Strong candidates will bring front-line individual major-gift fundraising experience from think tanks, public policy organizations, museums, universities, cultural institutions, and civic organizations. International-affairs experience and intellectual curiosity preferred.
This position is located in Washington, D.C., and Meridian requires MD, DC, or VA residence for all employees.
Salary : $160,000 - $180,000