Job Board

The Assistant Director of Communications supports the mission of Vanderbilt Divinity School by supporting the communication and marketing needs of the school’s programs and initiatives, managing print, web, press releases and digital campaigns, social media, and audio and video that provide information about the Divinity School and showcase stories that speak to the impact of the school on prospective and current students, alumni, donors, faculty research and scholarship, and the broader community.

The Assistant Director will work closely with Divinity leadership to support the Divinity School’s mission, purposes and commitments, faculty, and students. In concert with the Assistant Dean of Admissions, Vocation, and Student Life, this position further engages our incoming and prospective students as part of a recruitment plan to maximize annual enrollment. The Assistant Director works closely with the Director of Online Learning to promote, support, and attract new audiences for all facets of online learning at the Divinity School.

Reporting to the Dean, the Assistant Director of Communications will be a collaborative team member who is able to manage multiple projects simultaneously and creatively, thoroughly, and confidentially. They will have a strong commitment to serve students and faculty in the context of a large research university and ecumenical divinity school. They will have entrepreneurial instincts and a desire to “get the job done.” The Assistant Director of Communications will be flexible in their approach to the work and shifting demands of the position and school.

Communications Strategy, Vision, and Leadership:

• Develop and implement an integrated, organization-wide strategic communications plan to broaden awareness of the Divinity School’s brand identity within the Divinity School community, internal University audiences, among prospective students and community partners in order to create an identifiable meaningful relationship with these audiences and the broader theological community.
• Oversee, or execute as needed, copy intended for public consumption to ensure its alignment with the strategic plan. This includes frequent collaboration with the School’s programs and events to ensure alignment in communication strategy and brand identity across all public and internal facing opportunities which may include, but not be limited to virtual and in person events and promotion related to them.
• In conjunction with the Dean and Assistant Dean of Admissions, Vocation, and Student Life and relevant internal VU partners, coordinate the development of print and branded materials.
• Pitch ideas to Vanderbilt University Communications Teams.
• Ensures information is concise, complete, and accurate.
• Build out detailed production schedules for print, email, and web projects.
• Provide graphic design when needed for printed or web materials.
• Envision, create, produce, and edit video and motion graphics projects.
• Utilize visual storytelling skills to support the Purposes and Commitments of the Divinity School.
• Lead and actively participate in team creative brainstorming.
• Manage time in a highly effective, independent manner.
• Provide training and mentorship to the Divinity School program coordinator and student workers in the communications landscape.

Social Media Platforms:

• Develop and implement digital communications strategy in consultation with the Dean, Assistant Dean for Admissions, Vocation, and Student Life, Director of Online Learning, and the Institutional Planning Committee.
• Write, edit, and proofread across a variety of online content mediums. Manage the School’s presence, including its programs, on social networking sites, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, as well as future unfolding technologies.
• Serve as an advocate of the Divinity School in social media spaces and continually seek ways to improve our exposure to prospective students and internal and external audiences.
• Utilize appropriate analytics to maximize traffic to digital platforms and increase audience.
• Review, report on, and interpret the effectiveness of campaigns.
• Stay current on events and trends in the social media industry to maintain our competitive advantage.
• Maintain lines of communication and opportunities for collaboration with Vanderbilt University Social and Web teams by attending meetings and pitching stories from Divinity School.

Website Development and Maintenance:

• Effectively manage the School’s website and develop content as needed.
• Identify, write, and publish compelling stories in collaboration with other Divinity School constituencies (faculty, staff, DAR, and alumni) to showcase the Divinity School’s value and impact locally and globally.
• Update organizational information and upcoming events on the website to deliver accurate and timely information.
• Partner with internal staff and external vendors to ensure the website and media platforms are achieving a positive increase in recruitment and engagement among key stakeholders.

This position supervises student worker(s) and has a dual supervisory responsibility of the Divinity School’s program coordinator with the Senior Program Manager. It reports administratively and functionally to the Dean.

Qualifications

• A Bachelor’s Degree in Communications, Marketing, or related field from an accredited institution of higher education is necessary.
• Theological education or training is preferred.
• At least five years’ experience in a communications role is necessary.
• Experience managing and executing across several communication media platforms is necessary.
• Proven exceptional writing, editing, and oral communication skills with the ability to convey highly complex information in clear, compelling ways is necessary.
• Experience with Microsoft Office Suite, Adobe Creative Suite, WordPress and popular content management systems (CMS) is necessary.
• Exceptional project management skills is necessary.
Job responsibilities listed herein are intended to be a thorough representation of the duties, responsibilities, expectations, and qualifications for this specific
role at the time of hire but should not be considered all-encompassing as actual responsibilities may evolve to include additional duties as assigned based on
organizational and operational needs.
• Demonstrate in-depth knowledge of communications and marketing with emphasis on social media and digital content is necessary.
• Familiarity with and passion for theological education and the vocational discernment process is strongly preferred.
• Strong connection with the Purposes and Commitments of Vanderbilt Divinity School is strongly preferred.
• Ability to work collegially with staff, faculty, and students as a team and leader is necessary.
• A proven ability to translate and advance initiatives across a broad spectrum of media channels, exercising a deep understanding of how to leverage content and storytelling to spark action and growth, influence the media environment, and then leverage media to move key stakeholders to action is necessary.
• Experience establishing and maintaining strong and productive relationships internally and with a variety of external constituencies: ally organizations and influencers in the field, creative and content partners, and the media generally is necessary.
• Strong organizational and financial management skills and excellent budgeting and planning skills is necessary.

At Vanderbilt University, we are intentional about and assume accountability for fostering advancement and respect for equity, diversity, and inclusion for all students, faculty, and staff. Our commitment to diversity makes us who we are.  We have created a community that celebrates differences and lets individuality thrive. As part of this commitment, we actively value diversity in our workplace and learning environments as we seek to take advantage of the rich backgrounds and abilities of everyone. The diverse voices of Vanderbilt represent an invaluable resource for the University in its efforts to fulfill its mission and strive to be an example of excellence in higher education.

Vanderbilt University is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. Women, minorities, people with disabilities and protected veterans are encouraged to apply.

Please note, all candidates selected for an offer of employment are subject to pre-employment background checks, which may include but are not limited to, based on the role for which they have been selected: criminal history, education verification, social media review, motor vehicle records, credit history, and professional license verification.