Director of Communications and Media Relations

Position Details

Qualifications

Job Duties and Tasks

• The Director of Communications and Media Relations will provide leadership and on-going oversight and management of communications for the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (Smarter Balanced), housed within UCLA's Graduate School of Education and Information Studies (GSE&IS). Smarter Balanced has an annual budget of approximately $37 million and employs approximately 30 staff members. The Director is responsible for overall planning, organization, and direction of Smarter Balanced communication strategies. The Director, in collaboration with senior leadership and Governing States, will develop and execute primarily external communications plans that promote Smarter Balanced as a high quality assessment system, developed by educators, and endorsed by higher education. Successful candidate needs to be a self-starter, have state agency experience and ability to translate technical language into public facing documents; Proactively think about upcoming assessment issues and write talking points as well as write press releases and communications materials regarding key consortium milestones and policies; serve as the primary contact for media inquiries and serve as a key spokesperson with high profile media outlets for the Consortium. The Director of Communications and Media Relations will report to the Deputy Executive Director.
• Smarter Balanced is a start-up unit within the UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies that functions in a virtual environment. With staff operating in states across the country, the successful candidate will be a self-starter, experienced at using good judgment in a professional setting, and demonstrate agility and innovation on the job.

Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities Required

• 1.Demonstrated advanced experience in working with state and Federal education agencies (e.g. US Department of Education and State Department of Education), and private entities sufficient to manage projects according to strict budgetary and deliverable guidelines.Required
• 2. Working knowledge of and demonstrated skill in understanding statistical reports and communicating critical technical information to a variety of audiences.Required
• 3. Experience in dealing with high profile media outlets and responding quickly to media inquires.Required
• 4. Knowledge of K-12 public education, the structure and organization of schools, and recent trends and technical issues in accountability policy at the state and federal levels.Required
• 5. Excellent writing ability including an eagle eye for grammatical errors and ability to substantively correct reports and deliverables which are suitable for publication in professional journals and/or meet the requirements of the grant or contract sponsors.Required
• 6. Excellent skills in making oral group presentations to present project information to a variety of audiences and explain the methods and the meaning of the work being done.Required
• 7. Skill in project management and in delegating tasks and directing others as necessary toward a common goal.Required
• 8. Ability to perform effectively under conditions of high pressure and fluctuating workload.Required
• 9. Skill in analyzing information, problems, situations, practices, or procedures to define a problem or objective; identify relevant concerns or factors; identify patterns, tendencies and relationships, formulate logical and objective conclusions, recognize alternatives and their implications; conduct both research and evaluations using these skills.Required
• 10. Outstanding interpersonal communications skills to build relationships with Smarter Balanced staff to develop communications plans for team initiatives and to proactively promote the work of staff to members, media, and educators.Required
• 11. Minimum 7 to 10 years experience in marketing, communications, public relations, and demonstrated success in K-12 or higher education.Required

Additional Info

For more info: Paisha Allmendinger

How to Apply

Applications are handled through UCLA's online Employment gateway. To apply, search for the UCLA Human Resources Requisition Number listed above on the Career Opportunities website and follow the instructions provided to submit your application.