Communications and Outreach Coordinator

Oak Park and River Forest are communities that highly value diversity. OPRF is a founding member of the national Minority Student Achievement Network, and our school is racially and economically diverse, with about 44% of our 3,300 students identifying as African-American, Hispanic, multiracial, or Asian. Our villages have long embraced the LGBTQ community, and we have a significant mix of homeowners and renters.
We seek faculty and staff who have high expectations for all students, and who value student voice in education. As a school, we are particularly focused on closing opportunity gaps for our students of color.

OPRF is an equal opportunity employer that provides equal employment opportunities to all without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or genetics. OPRF’s goal is to increase its representation of people of color.

Background:
Oak Park and River Forest High School District 200 is a progressive district that is focused not only on our tradition of excellence but our future. The District prides itself in offering our students a comprehensive 9-12 college and career readiness curriculum and a rich arts education program. Our students are curious, creative, and they come ready to learn. More than 90 percent of our students go on to college.
Oak Park and River Forest High School District 200 believes that we can “become an ever-improving model of equity and excellence that will enable all students to achieve their full potential.” We can accomplish this through dedicated teachers, staff, and administration who build relationships with students and have high expectations for themselves and their students. We believe in planning for and providing the academic and developmental support students need to meet those expectations. We further believe that every student can learn through exposure to academically challenging content, feedback during learning, and the educator’s knowledge and skill.

Oak Park and River Forest High School District 200 is a great place for those who are interested in an environment that supports creativity, leadership at all levels, innovation, a focus on professional and curriculum development, and the best practices of instruction. We are currently seeking individuals to join our team where we enable all students to achieve their full potential every day.

Position Summary:
This position helps promote District news, programs, initiatives, and priorities to key audiences, including parents, students, faculty and staff, community members, and the media. Generates content for social media outlets and works with the executive director of communications and community relations to prepare videos, media pitches and news releases, website and intranet content, District publications (both print and electronic), etc.

Essential Responsibilities:
1. Serve as backup to the executive director of communications and community relations and be available in their absence.
2. Assist in developing and implementing long-term strategic communications goals, in collaboration with the executive director of communications and community relations.
3. Know the crisis communications plan, be able to craft messages appropriate for various audiences, know and use protocols for disseminating them.
4. Provide communications support to District leadership. Craft and relay messaging for internal and external stakeholders in support of the district's strategic priorities.
5. Lead social media program. Plan, create, and post appropriate content regularly to District social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube). Monitor platforms, and respond to questions and comments as needed. Develop new platforms, if needed. Plan and execute social media campaigns for particular events/issues. Analyze effectiveness.
6. Manage communications requests; includes scheduling emails and recording robocalls for stakeholders.
7. Lead multimedia program. Plan, shoot, and edit District photographs and videos; includes day-to-day happenings and various events. Maintain a file library.
8. Lead digital signage program; design and post content for school TVs and marquee.
9. Design various digital and print marketing materials that align with branding guidelines for District-wide campaigns and initiatives in collaboration with various departments; includes flyers, posters, logos, pamphlets, guidebooks, and more.
10. Assist with drafting and producing electronic and print publications, including weekly e-newsletter.
11. Assist with news gathering. Seek out potential stories, and craft pitches and press releases for the local media. Cultivate and maintain positive relationships with reporters. Maintain a record of media mentions.
12. Assist with maintaining the District website, in collaboration with the IT department. Plan, write, update content. Monitor others’ pages to ensure they’re current. Help provide training and support to staff to maintain their pages.
13. Advise staff on best practices for presentations, video production, and digital content creation.
14. Assist with maintaining staff intranet. Plan, write, update content.
15. Assist with planning and executing community events as needed.
16. Plan and host campus tours for prospective families and transfer students.
17. Participate in professional growth activities.
18. Exhibit a positive attitude and project a positive image to all stakeholders.
19. Perform occasional clerical tasks.
20. Perform other duties as assigned.