https://jobs.oregonstate.edu/postings/159226 

The Division of Extension and Engagement’s Extension Outdoor School program is seeking a Communications Coordinator. This is a full-time (1.00 FTE), 12-month, professional faculty position. Refer to the Working Conditions section of the posting for information on flexible work arrangements.

The Outdoor School Communications Coordinator is a member of the Division of Extension and Engagement’s (Division) Extension Service Outdoor School program and reports to the Operations Manager.

This position supports the statewide Outdoor School program in the following areas:

• Develop and implement the Outdoor School program communication plan.
• Facilitate effective communication and data curation using the constituent relationship management (CRM) and digital communication platforms.
• Develop and coordinate Outdoor School web content and serve as program’s lead for web platform maintenance and administration.
• Manage all Outdoor School digital communication, including social media, emails and e-newsletters and other outreach.

The Division has built the capacity and expectation for employees to use digital communications and technologies in the modern-day workplace. This reflects our demonstrable commitment to using digital communications tools and changing technologies as a primary way to raise Oregonian’s awareness of and engagement with our organization, programs and resources. These activities will be considered for inclusion in the unit and program annual plan of work, impact statements and summary of accomplishments/achievements.

Purpose of the PositionThe Communications Coordinator will plan, coordinate, direct and evaluate the communications and marketing program for the Outdoor School program. They provide overall statewide leadership for the Outdoor School program by working with the Outdoor School team to develop and implement a written communication plan, and by planning and monitoring performance of the communication plan against the Outdoor School’s program goals and objectives of building support for outdoor school and informing/educating outdoor school program participants.

The Communications Coordinator will create (independently and with the help of the Outdoor School team and the outdoor school community) layout and content for the outdoor school website, digital communications and social media platforms, as well as promotional materials, informational/educational documents and other marketing tools. This individual is expected to possess familiarity with outdoor school and/or youth focused, place-based environmental education, as well as expertise in communications, digital content management and project management. Specific work tasks will be determined in consultation with the program Director and Operations Manager.

This work is done in alignment with university and division marketing and communication plans, governance and brand guidelines.

This position is embedded in the Outdoor School program, which reaches close to 45,000 young people from over 500 schools annually. The position provides communication and marketing leadership, strategy and tactical support for the program, operates as liaison and extended team member of the Division of Extension and Engagement’s communications and marketing team, and collaborates with other programs and teams as needed.

In addition, this individual helps ensure that Extension and Engagement educational, informational and promotional content and efforts serve broad and diverse populations in an accessible, inclusive, equitable, and socially just manner. This includes complying with Civil Rights and Language/Visual Access regulations.

About Extension Outdoor School:The Outdoor School Communications Coordinator contributes to the Outdoor School program’s mission to guide and support equitable, culturally responsive, and interdisciplinary outdoor school programs for Oregon’s youth.

The Outdoor School program resides within the OSU Extension Service and advances the Extension Service’s vision, mission, and goals through the statewide engagement of School Districts and Education Service Districts (ESDs) in outdoor school programming. The Outdoor School program helps Oregon’s youth apply learning; develop leadership, critical thinking, and social skills; and exposes them to the role of scientific inquiry and applied learning. The long-term goal of the Outdoor School program is to integrate placed-based programs into the Oregon school system that build upon youth’s skills in hands-on science and their abilities to be effective stewards and leaders in their communities.

Outdoor school is intended for all 5th or 6th graders in the state of Oregon. The Outdoor School program Coordinators work with school districts across the state or in their regions to maximize participation by providing support in the funding application and reporting process, promoting inclusive community engagement, and working with districts to implement creative, community-specific solutions to outdoor school participation barriers. The Outdoor School program website is: https://outdoorschool.oregonstate.edu/.

Key Responsibilities

70% – Statewide Outdoor School, Outreach and MarketingProgram Administration and Support

• Serve as a point of contact for all Outdoor School-related communication and marketing work.
  • Lead the Outdoor School’s communications, marketing, constituent relationship management and digital engagement strategies with a focus on equity and accessibility.
  • Lead team communication planning meetings.
  • Plan and prioritize the program’s communication and marketing efforts.
  • Lead the development and management of internal program communication processes and norms, including team email lists (for internal or external email updates) and Teams channels.
  • Align employee use of OSU and division brand guidelines, digital publishing standards, and digital contact management and data integrity practices as they relate to communications, marketing and engagement.
  • Align program communication with youth safety, risk management and other compliance issues.
• Coordinate and/or manage student employees (using project management tools) to develop and/or administer changes to digital assets, which includes to:
  • maintain documentation for digital content usage.
  • determine visual needs of content and source, enter, upload, tag, and add quality images to new or existing content following brand, accessibility, and other requirements.
• Consult, educate, train and work with appropriate Outdoor School, Extension Service and OSU parties and systems to ensure internal compliance, skill development and strategic approaches to communications and marketing.
• Participate in and ensure access to training opportunities to build personal and team knowledge and skills in digital communications and engagement technologies.
• Work with Outdoor School leadership to ensure that Outdoor School program efforts are included in the unit’s impact statements and summary of accomplishments/achievements.
• Work with the Extension Digital Engagement Strategy Team and both Outdoor School and Extension Salesforce Developers to implement a CRM practice.
• Collaborate with the Division’s Communications and Technology directors, and their teams, on Outdoor School program plans for digital communications, marketing and engagement to ensure alignment of strategies and systems.
• Provide leadership on Outdoor School Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts, in collaboration with the Outdoor School Outreach and Inclusion Coordinator.
• Receive and reply to (or forward, as appropriate) queries from the general public, related to Outdoor School.

Program Communications and MarketingUsing experience with and understanding of outdoor school and/or youth-serving environmental education programming, as well as expertise in communications and marketing:

• Develop, design and implement digital communication and marketing messages and strategies (as part of the Outdoor School Communications Plan) to bring awareness of Outdoor School, as well as outdoor school-related resources, to our communities.
  • Develop, use and communicate appropriate use of branding and co-branding guidelines for program materials.
  • Develop marketing strategies and utilize appropriate print and digital tools to reach intended audience segments.
  • Provide appropriate messaging for the Outdoor School program, update as needed, and provide tools for program coordinators and staff to ensure the appropriate messaging is being used/delivered.
• Develop and implement integrated/automated Marketing Cloud-based marketing campaigns for the Outdoor School program, in collaboration and coordination with the Outdoor School Coordinators.
• Analyze and interpret digital reach and engagement metrics to tell the story of the program’s accomplishments and opportunities in digital communication channels.
• Create and continuously adapt an Outdoor School Communication Plan in response to the collected digital reach and engagement metrics.
• Develop or co-develop new communication and marketing tools and templates ranging from short videos, promotional or program materials, newsletters, informational emails and talking points.
• Provide leadership by representing and speaking on behalf of the program at internal and external conferences, and by serving on local/national Extension committees.
• Review annually, and update as needed, the use of University branding and logos for statewide Outdoor School resources (e.g., banners, badges, handouts, promotional materials, etc.).
• Coordinate editing and design of and collaborate on writing for biennial and ad hoc Outdoor School program reports.
• Use enterprise digital content and engagement tools to efficiently manage and coordinate one-off or auto-generated digital delivery of Outdoor School and outdoor school-related educational content, program information, and other related resources and trainings to Outdoor School audiences.
• Follow OSU and division brand guidelines, digital publishing standards and digital contact management and data integrity practices for programmatic communications, marketing and engagement.
• Attend training opportunities to build basic knowledge and consistent skills to use digital communications, marketing and engagement technologies relevant to this position’s duties.

15% – OSU Extension Outdoor School Web Content Development and Maintenance

• Serve as a point of contact to:
  • Communicate changes and new features to the Outdoor School team.
  • Evaluate and act, when applicable, on feedback from the Outdoor School team about requested improvements.
  • Ensure that web content is up to date, relevant, and reaches target audiences.
  • Identify and prioritize needs related to Outdoor School website development and revisions.
  • Oversee the drafting, peer review, publishing and maintenance of new content.
  • Plan, manage, and work with appropriate teams to achieve timely solutions to website functionality or maintenance issues.
• Identify and develop custom solutions within the overall Outdoor School website structure.
  • Review, analyze and share web analytics and visitor feedback to inform decisions and improvements.
• Develop integrated digital strategies, as appropriate, to promote new web content, and drive readership to the website.
• Provide web and marketing strategy consultation by attending web team meetings, advising on best practices, and serving as a bridge between the Division’s communications and marketing team and the Outdoor School program.
• Serve as a reviewer of content as needed.

10% – Division Communications, Marketing and Digital Engagement Collaboration

• Serve as creative and strategic resource on recurring and one-time cross-program and Division campaigns that intersect with Outdoor School audiences.
• Participate on teams and communities of practice related to multimedia, social media and digital marketing to exchange best practices and improve alignment in strategy, content, process and tools.
• Participate actively in the OSU communicators’ network, including attending workshops and meetings held by University Relations and Marketing

5% – Other Duties as Assigned

What You Will Need

• Bachelor’s degree in Communications, Business, Education, Environmental Science, or a related field with at least three (3) years’ professional experience in communications and/or marketing; or a combination of professional experience and advanced education that demonstrates a comparable background.
• Administrative, project management, and interpersonal skills that enhance and support the identities and cultural experiences of colleagues and customers.
• Strong writing and oral communication skills with demonstrated success in achieving comprehension by broad and diverse public audiences.
• Experience using modern data entry or business process software including, but not limited to, website content management software (CMS), customer relationship manager (CRM) software, social media publishing platforms, digital marketing tools, Microsoft Office, Google, and similar platforms.
• Familiarity with types of marketing or communications that support or engage people who hold identities that have been historically underrepresented and underserved.
• Ability to learn and adapt to using multiple forms of digital communication systems and other tools in a changing technological environment.
• Ability to apply practices for equity and accessibility as related to communications, marketing, digital platforms or data management.
• Ability to lead groups through the process of developing a comprehensive plan in service of supporting or improving a complex organizational requirement.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently while being able to work as an integral member of a project team.
• Ability to collect and synthesize information, prioritize needs and requests, promote collaboration, and facilitate communication to solve issues.
• A commitment to collaborative and respectful learning and workplace environments that are safe, inclusive, and welcoming.

This position is designated as a critical or security-sensitive position; therefore, the incumbent must successfully complete a criminal history check and be determined to be position qualified as per University Standard: 05-010 et seq. Incumbents are required to self-report convictions and those in youth programs may have additional criminal history checks every 24 months.

What We Would Like You to Have

Knowledge of and experience with:

• Salesforce and Marketing Cloud.
• Social media management platforms (such as Sendible).
• Digital media content platforms (such as Acrobat, InDesign, Illustrator, Canva, etc.)
• Website content management systems (CMS) and website themes (such as Umbraco / uSkinned and/or Drupal).
• Project management tools (such as Microsoft Planner, Asana, etc.).
• Familiarity with insurance and risk management, youth programming and safety, and other compliance and communication issues and their implications for communications and marketing work.
• Experience with brand management, such as development of and/or use of brand standards.
• Demonstrable commitment to working with underrepresented/underserved learners or other audiences.

Knowledge of:

• outdoor or environmental education
• outdoor school
• equity, accessibility, and civil rights

Demonstrated ability to lead a diverse group through the development of complex communications and marketing plans and experience in creating and implementing the communications and marketing plans.

Demonstrated ability to cultivate practices for equity and accessibility as related to communications, marketing, digital platforms and/or data management.

Demonstrated ability to analyze or interpret metrics around digital reach and engagement for the purpose of evaluating results, and which is used to inform the communication and marketing strategic choices.

Life experience, education, or training that broadens capacity to impact underserved audiences.