Section I: Organization Information

Name/Title of Contact:  Emily Davis and Julie Appolloni, Senior Directors of Financial
Development

Address:  23rd and Chestnut Streets, Philadelphia, PA  19103
     
Phone Number: 215-299-4064; 215-299-4033

Email Address:  emily.davis@redcross-philly.org; appollj@redcross-philly.org

Web Address:  www.redcross-philly.org

Total Number of Staff Members: 95
     
Total Agency Budget: $14,243,054

Agency Mission:  The American Red Cross, a humanitarian organization led by volunteers, guided by its Congressional Charter and the Fundamental Principles of the International Red Cross Movement, will provide relief to victims of disasters and help people prevent, prepare for, and respond to disasters.

Fellow’s Job Title:  Development Associate


Section II: The Nitty Gritty

1. Will fellow be working at the same address listed above? If not, please list the address
for the fellow’s worksite.  

The fellow will work at the same address as listed above.

2.  Will the fellow have:   

A. _x__Own Office?              ____Shared Office?            ____No Office?  

B. __x_Own Desk?               ____Shared Desk?              ____No Desk?

C. __x_Own Computer?       ____Shared Computer?      ____No Computer?


3. Please state name and title of fellow’s immediate supervisor.

Emily Davis and Julie Appolloni, the Senior Directors of Financial Development, will provide joint supervision to the fellow.

4. Please approximate the percentage of time fellow will work:

40%  Independently      40%  As a team member in a group setting   

20%  As a team leader in a group setting


5. Will fellow be expected to travel as part of his/her position?

If so, will travel be: ____Within Philadelphia?  ___x_Outside Philadelphia?

How often will they need to travel? No more than once a month

Will fellow need: ____a car?   ____a transpass?  ____occasional tokens?

Will the agency provide or reimburse for these expenses?
The Red Cross will make a Chapter vehicle available to the fellow for work-related travel.  
Travel will not go beyond the five county service area.  


Section III:  Community Need
Please submit a one paragraph response for each question.

1.        Please state in measurable and quantifiable terms the specific community need that the Philly Fellow will address, including the number of people in the community directly affected by the problem.

This year, the American Red Cross Southeastern Pennsylvania Chapter responded to 905 disasters in Philadelphia, Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery Counties—an
increase of 3.4% over last year—and provided immediate comfort to more than 5,000
individuals.  In the aftermath of each of these disasters, the Red Cross first addressed the
critical primary needs of victims: food, clothing, and shelter.  However, this initial care is
only one aspect of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Chapter’s disaster recovery solution.  
More than 50% of disaster victims live below the poverty level and struggle each day to
maintain their independent lives. The advent of a house fire, flooding incident, building
collapse, or other disaster can exhaust the victim’s already limited resources and render
them at risk for homelessness. The Southeastern Pennsylvania Chapter’s one-of-a-kind
Red Cross House addresses this issue by providing personalized disaster recovery
support to impoverished disaster victims enabling them to successfully regain their
independent lives.  This year, the Red Cross House was home to 1,184 individuals for an
average of three weeks—a 20% increase over last year’s occupancy rate.  Each client
received personalized casework management; mental health counseling; housing search,
rental, and/or housing repair assistance; and a variety of referral services.  All services
were provided to the disaster victims at free of charge in a nurturing and supportive
environment.  The American Red Cross Southeastern Pennsylvania Chapter does not
anticipate any decrease in the demand for our services or any reduction in the costs
incurred by providing these services.  The Chapter is seeking a Philly Fellow to help
address the needs of low-income disaster victims by expanding the Chapter’s financial
capacity to serve them. The Philly Fellow will serve as a Development Associate and play a key role in the Chapter’s young professional outreach efforts, helping to connect this
previously untapped demographic with the Red Cross Mission and engage them as a new generation of donors and volunteers.

2.        Describe how your agency addresses this need, and how the new capacity created by this fellow will help alleviate the problem.

In order to fund the variety of services provided to disaster victims in the five-county area,
the Southeastern Pennsylvania Chapter maintains a Financial Development Team that
specializes in securing financial and in-kind donations. Each member of the Financial
Development Team works with a unique donor demographic in order to identify potential
sources of funding and engage prospects in the Red Cross’s ongoing work. Recently, a
review of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Chapter’s donor and volunteer base
demonstrated a low number of young professionals actively engaged with the
organization.  Currently, individuals between the ages of 21 and 40 comprise only 8% to
13% of our overall volunteer population while individuals 40 years of age and older make up 62% of our volunteer base.  The Chapter recognizes that in order to meet the financial
challenges presented by a growing need for services we must cultivate a new generation
of volunteers and donors.  The Philly Fellow Development Associate will work to launch the Chapter’s new young professional engagement efforts.  He/she will solicit, recognize, and retain new donors between the ages of 21 and 40 through strategic special events
planning and newsletter production, and targeted direct marketing campaigns.

3.        Describe the level of community involvement in the fellow’s project.
The fellow will have direct contact with both community members served by the Chapter
and community members with whom the Chapter partners.   Through participation in the
Disaster PR On Call schedule, the fellow will be available to respond to active disaster
sites, serve as a liaison between the Chapter and media outlets, and interact with disaster victims and volunteers. The fellow will also garner valuable experience interacting with the Philadelphia philanthropic and business communities through ongoing prospect research, donor solicitation and recognition.


Section IV:  Job Description

1.        Please outline in list form the fellow’s duties and responsibilities.

The Philly Fellows responsibilities are divided into three categories:  Special Events,
Newsletter Production, and Direct Marketing.  

Special Events targeting and engaging young professionals include Spectrum Awards,
Children’s Holiday Party, Red Ball Gala, and the Red Cross Walk.  The Philly Fellow will:
•        Assist with coordination of invitation mailings and event marketing to young
professional demographic
•        Develop relationships with other local non-profits and community organizations
(Campus Philly and Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce Young Professionals
Network) to cross market Red Cross events to their constituency
•        Assist with event logistics and solicitation of in-kind donations
•        Serve as an event host for top sponsors, board members, and key volunteers in order to strengthen their relationship with the Southeastern Pennsylvania Chapter
•        Participate in post-event relationship management of attendees and sponsors

Newsletters are currently produced three times a year.  They reflect the ongoing activities
of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Chapter and solicit donations from recipients.  The Philly Fellow Development Associate will:
•        Develop strategic creative content for three existing newsletters and one new
newsletter
•        Write, design, and edit newsletter
•        Work with printing vendors to produce and distribute newsletter
•        Spearhead follow-up efforts to donors, prospects, volunteers, board members, and
corporate partners who received the newsletter
•        Develop a corresponding e-newsletter designed to reach the young professional
demographic

Direct Marketing serves as a primary point of entry for many first-time donors and is a key
component of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Chapter’s efforts to engage young
professionals.  The Philly Fellow Development Associate’s will:
•        Produce and distribute a direct mail solicitation directly targeting the young
professional demographic
•        Produce and distribute a corresponding email campaign


2.        Please outline in list form the skills/qualifications a fellow should have to succeed in
this position.
•        High energy, creative individual with the ability to take initiative and achieve goals
•        Excellent verbal and written communication skills and ability to pay close attention to
detail
•        Passion for and interest in the Red Cross mission
•        Expertise in Microsoft Office Suite, and online publishing software
•        Familiarity with InDesign and Photoshop preferred
•        Ability to work nights and weekends
•        Red Cross driver’s license and criminal background check required


3. Please outline your agency’s plan to orient and train the fellow.
The fellow will receive an on-site orientation during their first month of employment that
will include the following:  mandatory First Aid and CPR/AED training, printed materials
detailing the background and current status of assigned projects, a tour of the Chapter
building and Red Cross House, and informational interviews with all Chapter Senior
Directors and Directors.  The fellow will also participate in mandatory Philly Fellow
leadership and professional development trainings.


Section V:  Supervision/Resources

1. Please briefly describe plans for supervision of fellow.

The Senior Directors of Financial Development, Emily Davis and Julie Appolloni will provide joint supervision to fellow.  The fellow will participate in weekly one-on-one meetings with project supervisors and attend weekly team meetings to provide status updates on assigned duties.  The Philly Fellow will undergo a formal review once each quarter during their term of service prior to the submission of quarterly Philly Fellow evaluations.  

2. What methods, information, or data will you use to evaluate the fellow’s success in their
position?

The fellow’s success will be evaluated against the fulfillment of the duties and goals
outlined in this proposal. Senior Directors of Financial Development will also employ the
standard Southeastern Pennsylvania Chapter employee Performance Management
System which evaluates each employee’s on a scale of one to five in the following areas:  
Key Responsibilities, Work-related Behaviors, Overall Job Performance, Performance
Development, and Career Growth.  The fellow and his/her supervisor will assess these
topics both mid-year and at the conclusion of the fellow’s employment.

Section VI: Project Plan

Please outline goals and results you expect the fellow to achieve and the measures you
will use to evaluate performance. These goals must address the community need stated
above.

1.        Please describe the proposed project goal you expect the fellow to achieve.
The goal of the Philly Fellow Development Associate is to facilitate the engagement of the
young professional demographic as Red Cross volunteers and donors in order to expand
the Chapter’s financial capacity to provide relief to impoverished disaster victims in City of Philadelphia and the surrounding five county area.  The fellow will engage young
professionals through special event planning, newsletter production, and direct marketing
initiatives.

2.        Please list significant milestones for this project and dates by which they will be
accomplished:

Special Events Milestones
•        Spectrum Awards Event Completion:  early November 2008
•        Children’s Holiday Party Event Completion:  mid-December 2008
•        Red Ball Event Completion:  March 2009
•        Red Cross Walk Event Completion:  April 2009
Newsletter Milestones:  
•        Fall Newsletter Mailing:  September 2008
•        Winter Newsletter Mailing:  December 2008
•        Spring Newsletter Mailing:  March 2009
•        Summer Newsletter Mailing (new):  June 2009
Direct Marketing Milestones:
•        Holiday Young Professional Acquisition Mailing:  November 2008
•        Young Professional Email Campaign Launch:  January 2009