Posted on December 17, 2012

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Communications Strategist

The American Civil Liberties Union Foundation (ACLU), founded in 1920, is a nationwide, non-profit, nonpartisan organization, with more than 500,000 members and is dedicated to the principles of liberty and equality embodied in the U.S. Constitution. The Communications Department of the ACLU’s National Office in New York City is seeking applicants for the full-time position of Communications Strategist.

Under the supervision of the Associate Director for Strategic Communications, the Communications Strategist will play a critical role in developing and executing communications strategies that raise public awareness of the ACLU’s work to advance civil liberties causes. The strategist will work to advance the agenda of the ACLU in a number of ways, including collaborating with media relations staff, lawyers, lobbyists and state advocates to develop communications goals and plans. Additionally, the strategist will create public education plans for litigation and advocacy; work with advocacy, media and field staff to develop communications strategies for federal and state legislative issues and create content for publications and the website, and plan events

ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Lead the development of multi-faceted communications strategies on issues housed in the Center for Equality, which focuses on immigrants’ rights, racial justice, voting rights and disability rights.
• Participate in shaping communications plans for legal cases and initiatives to maximize their communications value and visibility.
• Develop multi-faceted communications plans, which include message development, web presence, advocacy and social media to educate and motivate target audiences.
• Work with the advocacy team to develop communications strategies for federal and state legislative initiatives.
• Work with members of the legal and advocacy teams to develop messages on sensitive and/or controversial issues.
• Work with media relations colleagues to prepare clients, litigators and other spokespeople for media appearances.
• Draft and edit blog posts, website text, reports and other communications materials.
• Collaborate with the Communications web team on strategy and promotion.
• Coordinate branding and issue-oriented advertising.
• Strategize to determine the most effective prospects for disseminating the ACLU messages and brand.
• Provide affiliates with national communications messaging and materials and assist them in the development of their own communications materials and strategy when necessary.

EXPERIENCE AND QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s Degree required.
• A minimum of five years’ professional experience in a combination of the following areas: media, digital communications and public relations.
• Experience working on issues of immigrants’ rights, voting rights, racial justice and disability rights is strongly desired.
• Experience in promoting complex issues to varied audiences.
• Strong interpersonal skills and an ability to work effectively with others in a team environment.
• Must have strong organizational skills, be detail-oriented and possess the ability to follow projects through to completion.
• Strong writing and editing skills; ability to produce clear, concise materials on tight deadlines.
• Spanish language proficiency is a plus.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office and Internet usage.
• A demonstrated interest in civil liberties and passion for the work of the ACLU is essential.

COMPENSATION

The ACLU offers a generous and comprehensive compensation and benefits package, commensurate with experience and within parameters of the ACLU compensation scale.

Application Instructions

Please submit a letter of interest (with salary requirements), a resume and a writing sample (no more than three pages in length) via email to hrjobsCOMM@aclu.org - reference [COMM-40/PND] in the subject line.

This job description provides a general but not comprehensive list of the essential responsibilities and qualifications required. It does not represent a contract of employment. The ACLU reserves the right to change the description and/or posting at any time without advance notice.

The ACLU comprises two separate corporate entities, the American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU Foundation. Both the American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU Foundation are national organizations with the same overall mission, and share office space and employees. The ACLU has two separate corporate entities in order to do a broad range of work to protect civil liberties. This job posting refers collectively to the two organizations under the name “ACLU.”