Puget Sound Educational School District seeks a Communications Director to provide leadership, strategy and direction of the agency’s internal and external communications, and to support regional school districts with strategic communication, ensuring that communications services are consistently aligned with the Agency’s End: Success for Each Child and Eliminating the Opportunity Gap by Leading with Racial Equity.

Essential Functions

• Collaborates with a wide variety of internal and external parties (e.g. PSESD department staff, media, community organizations, public agencies, etc.) for the purpose of delivering information and effective communications tools to clients.
• Creates internal and external activities, trainings and educational materials for the purpose of ensuring PSESD communication services are performed efficiently, in a service-oriented manner, and in accordance with professional standards.
• Cultivates productive relationships with PSESD and school district contacts through collaboration with key stakeholders for the purpose of facilitating implementation of best-practice communication strategies in alignment with the agency’s objectives.
• Develops and manages agency-wide communication strategies, standards, protocols, and tools for the purpose of maintaining brand consistency across agency media and publications, and meeting department, program and agency goals.
• Develops and implements marketing plans for products for the purpose of providing recommendations and resources that serve our client districts and educational communities.
• Directs the use of various forms of media (e.g. websites, social media, electronic communications, video production, graphic design, and printed materials, etc.) to communicate, inform and engage for the purpose of increasing awareness of the agency and its services.
• Directs department operations and service delivery for the purpose of achieving stated outcomes; implementing and/or updating policies and procedures, and providing services within budget and staffing allocations for the purpose of both compliance and increased outcomes for programs and ultimately students and teachers served.
• Embodies the principles and practices that form our culture and commitment to becoming an Antiracist Multicultural Organization for the purpose of meeting the Agency’s End: Success for Each Child and Eliminating the Opportunity Gap by Leading with Racial Equity.
• Identifies opportunities for meaningful sponsorships and school-district engagement for the purpose of supporting educational initiatives and being a visible presence in the school district community.
• Leads the regional communications network comprised of district communication representatives for the purpose of supporting school districts' communication needs.
• Maintains a variety of manual and electronic documents, files and records for the purpose of providing up-to-date reference, public records and audit trail for compliance with ESD, state and federal regulations, and/or grant requirements.
• Oversees emergency communications for the purpose of ensuring system design, function, and implementation of procedures.
• Participates in and leads a variety of meetings (e.g. workshops, inter and intra district committees, seminars, conferences, etc.) for the purpose of conveying and gathering information on a wide variety of subjects required to carry out responsibilities.
• Presents information on a variety of topics related to program responsibilities (e.g. financial information, overviews of programs/services, policies and procedures, etc.) for the purpose of providing general information, training others, implementing actions.
• Responds to a wide variety of inquiries from administrators, staff, district personnel, other professional organizations, etc. for the purpose of providing requested information, developing plans for services and/or making recommendations, resolving problems, and/or referring to appropriate personnel.
• Supervises personnel (e.g., provide coaching and consultation on technical issues, adaptive challenges, personnel matters, strategic opportunities, career goals, professional development, job performance, etc.) for the purpose of advancing the development of effective leaders and high performing teams and achieving agency and departmental objectives.

ANTIRACIST LEADERSHIP COMPETENCIES

CULTURAL PROFICIENCY: Articulates and applies historical context of racism and understands the current reality of students and communities of color in order to support racial equity. Actively demonstrates a commitment to supporting equity and inclusion, and serves as an advocate with colleagues, partners, and communities to meet the Agency's End and goal of becoming an Antiracist Multicultural Organization in support of eliminating the opportunity gap.

RACIAL EQUITY ADVOCATE: Recognizes, supports, and engages in dismantling institutional racism. Partners with and is accountable to those with whom we are in a transformational relationship, including children, families, and communities of color.

RACIAL EQUITY MINDSET: Demonstrates awareness of biases, internalized racial superiority and oppression. Leads with a racial equity lens and actively uses the racial equity tool in meaningful ways.

TRANSFORMATIONAL VALUES: Contributes to valuable and positive, antiracist transformation in individuals, organizations, and social systems in an effort to actively progress across the antiracist multicultural institution continuum. Is able to foster a sense of community and shared purpose via collaboration and cooperation with others inside and outside PSESD. Embodies the principles and practices that form the Agency’s culture. Operates from an abundance mentality that recognizes opportunities, and is optimistic and realistic about the future.

JOB-SPECIFIC COMPETENCIES
ACCURACY AND ATTENTION TO DETAIL: Ensures work is thoughtfully completed, accurate, and error free to the highest degree possible.

PLANNING, ORGANIZATION, AND PRIORITIZATION: Assesses the work to be performed, and considers how it should be organized and accomplished, with appropriate priorities and realistic time parameters.

SYSTEMS THINKING: Sees the integral, complex relationships of interconnected systems that need to work together for the whole to function successfully. Events and actions are seen in detail and in the larger context of a pattern that unfolds over time.

• Bachelor’s degree in job-related field
• Professional experience in communications, branding, and marketing, with knowledge of current best practices
• Demonstrates a commitment to leading with racial equity and understanding of antiracism leadership
• Experience or knowledge designing, managing, and/or monitoring website content, graphic designs, social media and/or systems
• Project development and management experience
• Strong writing, editing, and proofreading skills

• Public school pre-K - 12 educational systems experience
• Experience collaborating with diverse groups to reach common goals
• Supervisory Experience
• Experience developing and managing content (print, online, video) with delivery across multiple platforms
• Budget development and management experience and/or experience with creation and oversight of fee for service business models
• Experience with media relations
• Event management experience
• Professional experience with public records