Communications Associate - Ideas for America

JOB DESCRIPTION

The Scholars Strategy Network (SSN) is hiring a Communications Associate to lead the communications work associated with its new Ideas for America initiative and contribute to the success of SSN’s overall communications program. Ideas for America will help scholars develop and then elevate research-based policy proposals during the upcoming presidential election cycle, as well as in federal and state policy circles. As Ideas for America launches, we anticipate that the Communications Associate will focus on developing custom media strategies for each proposal and work directly with the researchers involved in the project on their media efforts including op-eds and interviews in order to bring attention to their policy ideas and the project as a whole.

Communications Associates work on a variety of issue areas related to our members’ research and interests. In addition to the work around Ideas for America, the Communications Associate will cultivate requests from journalists for connections to scholars or research, proactively identify media opportunities and activate scholars around them, and help individual scholars seeking advice on how to engage with the media. 

The Communications Associate is a grant-limited, full-time position with a salary hiring range between $58,000-$66,000, based on qualifications and experience. SSN’s competitive benefits include generous time off, health insurance, professional development opportunities and resources, and a 403B retirement plan with an employer match. This position falls within the SSN employee union and is covered under the terms of the collective bargaining agreement. SSN currently operates in a remote-first, hybrid work environment, but this role may be available as a fully remote position for an exceptionally qualified candidate. For employees located in Massachusetts, SSN provides the option to work at SSN’s main offices, located at 501 Boylston St., Boston, MA 02116. Employees located out of state will be expected to participate in-person for semi-annual staff gatherings. 

The person in this position will be part of SSN’s Communications team and reports directly to SSN’s Director of Communication. This is a grant-funded position ending in December 2027. Although the grant is expected to end in December 2027, the hope is that additional funding will be obtained to extend employment.

RESPONSIBILITIES

SSN has a Communications team that supports and creates opportunities for a large and growing network of over 2,200 members who work in more than 330 colleges and universities across the US. SSN also supports a network of 37 chapters led by volunteer members in 33 states. Among other tasks, the Communications Associate will: 

Contribute to the Ideas for America Program

• Develop custom media strategy plans: The Associate will work with SSN’s policy team and the researchers involved in the Ideas for America project to develop detailed, custom media strategy plans for each of the selected projects. These plans will focus on identifying media moments of opportunity, targeted outlets and journalists, and key talking points.
• Identify media opportunities: The Associate will monitor national and state level news to identify timely moments to activate particular researchers or elevate specific ideas from the Ideas for America project.
• Broker relationships & support engagement: The Associate will build relationships with national and state-level reporters, producers, and editors to help researchers participating in the project elevate their ideas via the media and gain earned media. This will entail actively monitoring and building lists of relevant media stakeholders, conducting direct outreach to build relationships on behalf of SSN, and working to introduce researchers and their policy proposals during timely moments.
• Support and advise participating scholars: The Associate will work closely with researchers participating in Ideas for America, as well as the SSN policy staff working on this project, to identify the best ways to market and communicate their policy proposals and expertise. The Associate will help prepare researchers for media opportunities, including via pre-interview coaching sessions, feedback on pitches or op-ed drafts, and post-publication amplification efforts around earned media. 
• Market the Ideas for America project: In early 2027, the Ideas for American program will be unveiled via a DC-based launch event. The Associate will help market the event, bring press attention to the project and the individual researchers and proposals involved, and support in-person media opportunities for participants. The Associate will similarly support subsequent events as opportunities arise. 

Support the larger SSN Communications program

• Edit and translate: The Associate will help scholars translate their academic writing into accessible language that is intelligible to broad public audiences and effectively communicative to the media. 
• Broker relationships: The Associate will connect scholars and their research to media opportunities at the federal, state, and local levels. The Associate will do this by advising scholars on how to reach out, cultivating their own relationships with the media, while also soliciting and responding to requests from the media directly.
• Identify and seize opportunities: The Associate will identify opportunities for research to inform media coverage, activate scholars around those opportunities, and advise scholars on how to engage with journalists. To do this, the Associate will track timely media moments and build their own relationships with journalists to source requests for scholar expertise. 
• Coach and support: The Associate will coach and support scholars on how to engage with the media. They will provide advice on relationship building, editing and feedback on written documents like op-eds and letters to the editor, and train and prepare scholars for media interviews.

Qualifications

The successful candidate will be a self-starter with a deep interest in making research matter and improving public policy. The ideal candidate for this position would be:

• An individual with 1-3 years of experience in communications, journalism, public relations, or similar positions.
• An excellent writer and editor, capable of translating complex concepts into accessible language through a variety of communications materials and platforms.
• Someone with experience working with research and/or academics 
• Comfortable and ideally have experience working with a range of journalists, including print, TV, radio, and podcasts
• Someone with experience writing, editing, and pitching op-eds and Letters to the Editor.
• Familiar with and interested in US domestic policy and politics
• Highly organized, able to keep track of multiple projects and task, and good at multi-tasking
• Proficient in Microsoft Office, Google Docs, Dropbox, Salesforce, virtual meeting channels like Zoom, and content databases.
• Committed to SSN’s mission and fully understand how to make use of SSN’s structure as a voluntary, federated network of member researchers.

SSN is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age, class, color, disability, ethnicity, faith, gender, national origin, race, sexual orientation, or gender identity. People of color, people with disabilities, LGBTQ individuals, and women are strongly encouraged to apply. Candidates considering a career transition or whose skills and experience fulfill some, but not all of the qualifications above are encouraged to apply.