The Natick Public Schools Seek a
Director of Communications and Grants Specialist
Start Date: Approximately 8/1/2023
We invite you to explore a career with Natick Public Schools.
The Natick Public Schools educate approximately 5,300 students from Pre-K through age 22. We are an innovative, supportive, and high-performing district whose outstanding staff provides high quality services for our diverse students and their families from Natick and Boston. Natick Public Schools is a community dedicated to all students achieving high standards in a safe, trusting, respectful environment where learning is exciting, dynamic, and engaging, and where connectedness and belonging are valued and actively cultivated. We are home to families that speak almost 60 different languages and our student population is approximately 29% Students of Color and 71% White students. With a graduation rate of 97% and 90% of our students attending post-secondary schools, we are proud of our commitment to excellence in educating students to be informed and successful citizens of a global world.
We enthusiastically welcome educators to our district who seek and thrive in a diverse environment that focuses on the whole child in a strengths-based approach. Please partner with us in our mission to support the diversity of our school community, promote and deliver equitable practices for all of our staff, students, and families, and create meaningful connections that enable everyone to feel included and thrive.
Job Title
Director of Communications and Grants Specialist
Location
Central Office
Reports To
Superintendent
Work days/FTE
12 months position with holidays and vacation days/ 1.0 FTE
Salary
Individual contract negotiated based upon credentials and experience ($100,000 – $118,000)
Benefits Eligible?
Yes
Profile of a Natick Educator
JOB GOAL
The NPS Director of Communications reports to the Superintendent and has responsibility for three areas of district administration. The successful candidate for this role is a person who can develop and implement an equity-minded strategic communications plan designed to heighten awareness of the importance of education, equity, and increasing social mobility and to build support for transformative change. Utilizing expertise in diversity and inclusion-focused writing, reporting, and assessment for a wide range of audiences both internal and external to the Natick community, this position plays a critical role in helping to communicate NPS’s goals, progress, and journey through the use of quantitative and qualitative data, metrics, narrative, and stories from those in the NPS community.
Internal Communications
- Manages all of NPS’s internal print and digital content, including Intranet website, and email newsletter, including those of the Superintendent, to keep staff engaged and informed of organizational changes.
- Partners with the Technology Data Manager, Technology Department, and internal subject-matter experts to provide content for the NPS website and digital communications, and to ensure their use as effective communications tools for the organization.
- Builds community and develops relationships internally and externally with key stakeholders and community members to effectively convey the District’s core mission and work.
- Collaborates with other NPS and Town Departments to share resources ensuring constituents are receiving updated information related to public education, and other programs, benefits, or resources offered by other departments throughout the Town to ensure a holistic approach.
External Communications
- Coordinates all of NPS’s community engagement and communications strategies, campaigns, and/or messaging.
- Manages all of NPS’s public-facing print and digital content, including website, email newsletter, and social media accounts, including those of the Superintendent, to increase its public presence.
- Ensures the delivery of accurate and useful information regarding the activities, programs, and policies of the Natick Public Schools internally and to stakeholders, including the elected officials, town leadership, the non-profit, business, and industry sector collaborators, students and families, and other key stakeholders.
- Authors and/or provides editorial oversight for important reports and publications produced by NPS staff.
- Leads and coordinate NPS’s use of social media.
- Handles all inquiries from the media and manages the District’s responses.
Strategic Leadership
- Partners with the Superintendent to ensure consistent communications to members of the School Committee and Town of Natick partners.
- Builds strong relationships and closely coordinates all relevant strategies, campaigns, and/or messaging with the Town of Natick’s Director of Communications.
- Designs and facilitates meetings and workshops amongst partners, public, and/or educational partners.
- Designs and implements technology solutions as needed to streamline resource sharing and referrals.
- Transforms data sets, quantitative and qualitative analysis into compelling visuals and stories that highlight the work done by the Natick Public Schools.
Grants and Data Gathering
- Works with staff to design, execute and analyze data for specific needs including preparing surveys, conducting qualitative data gathering through focus groups or interviews, preparing analysis and reports.
- Serves on district committees and task forces where planning, project development, data gathering/analysis and grant writing expertise is needed
- Plans and writes grant proposals to government, foundation, corporate or private grant makers
- Establishes and maintains effective relationships with grant making agencies and institutions
- Cooperatively works with district and staff and community members in planning new initiatives, designing projects
- Functions as school liaison for community partnerships that support key district initiatives.
- Acts as primary contact to the Natick Education Foundation
QUALIFICATIONS
Education:
- Master’s Degree or higher
- MBA or equivalent experience preferred
Preferred Experience:
- Experience in marketing, branding, and product development
- Experience with qualitative and quantitative data gathering and analysis
- Proven track record in planning, project development, grant writing
- Experience with competitive and discretionary grants preferable
- Experience in a diverse public school setting a plus
- Commitment to and skills in promoting and supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion for our staff, students, families, and community
Skills:
- Demonstrated aptitude for work to be performed
- Excellent written and oral communication skills
- Excellent social/media literacy and skill across multiple platforms
- Skills in marketing and branding
- Skills in qualitative and quantitative data gathering and analysis
- Ability to develop trusting relationships and work with wide range of constituencies – school and community – towards a common goal
- Ability to strategically make connections among people, programs, resources and ideas
- Candidates must be flexible and collaborative
- Candidates must be able to multitask in a fast-paced, supportive environment that nurtures staff and student growth
- Candidates must be organized and able to meet ongoing, time-sensitive deadlines for work production
- Candidates should have a passion for working with students, families, and colleagues
- Bilingual skills, especially in Spanish and Portuguese, are highly desirable
Alternative degrees/experience may be substituted for the above
at the discretion of the Superintendent,
if such a substitution brings a strong candidate forward.
TERMS OF EMPLOYMENT:
Work Year: 224 days per year, distributed over twelve months, days, evenings, school vacations, and weekends depending upon program schedules, and coordinated with other administrators. Evening work will be required one or more times per week.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS OF THE JOB (not limited to)
The essential functions or duties listed below are intended only as illustration of the various types of work that may be performed. The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the position if work is similar, related, or a logical assignment to the position. This job description does not constitute an employment agreement between the employer and employee, and is subject to change by the employer, as the needs of the employer and the requirements of the job change.
PERFORMANCE RESPONSIBILITIES MAY INCLUDE
- Plans, prepares copy, edits, and helps design the school system’s annual newsletter.
- Plans, prepares copy, edits, and distributes the weekly Insider communications to staff and the weekly Engage communication to families.
- Oversees analysis of annual data gathering efforts such as biennial parent surveys, biennial alumni surveys, biennial MetroWest Adolescent Health Surveys
- Works with staff to design, execute and analyze data for specific needs including preparing surveys, conducting qualitative data gathering through focus groups or interviews, preparing analysis and reports.
- Serves on district committees and task forces where planning, project development, data gathering/analysis and grant writing expertise is needed
- Plans and writes grant proposals to government, foundation, corporate or private grant makers. Works with the Assistant Superintendent executing current grants
- Oversees the Natick Educational Foundation accounts
- Establishes and maintains effective relationships with grant making agencies and institutions
- Plans proper annual test scores presentations
- Assists with budget document and meaningful municipal reporting
- Prepares graphs, charts, etc. as needed
Communications
The Director of Communications partners with school staff and community members and organizations to develop the school/community partnership and communication strategies that make the district’s vision a reality. The Director engages in a continuous process of making connections among people, programs, resources and ideas – to add value to experiences for students. In this role, the Director may function as community liaison for projects, and acts as an advisor to a project or group. Additionally, the Director plans web-based, print and media communications for school departments and projects.
Specific responsibilities include:
- Cooperatively works with district and staff and community members in planning new initiatives, designing projects
- Ensures the district’s web presence is updated and robust
- Develops communication plans for projects as needed
- Functions as school liaison for community partnerships that support key district initiatives.
- Acts as primary contact to the Natick Education Foundation
- Work with principals to publicize the exemplary programs underway in the schools
- Functions as primary contact for Natick private schools as required by grant guidelines
- Attend a variety of school functions such as sporting events, parent events, concerts, plays, arts extravaganza, etc.
Digital Media
The Media and Communications Director works to enhance all digital media coming from the school department.
Specific responsibilities include:
- Update and redesign of web page
- Updating Facebook page
- Writing press releases/quarterly tax bill
- Creating promotional videos
- Sending messages out via Twitter
- Contributes to Teaching and Learning Blog
- Uses email blasts & Connect Ed
- Uses all digital media resources
- Update/Monitor Speak Up
Performs such other related tasks and assumes such other related responsibilities assigned by the Superintendent
WORK ENVIRONMENT AND PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS
The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. The employee must be able to perform the essential functions of the job satisfactorily and, if requested, reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of their job, absent undue hardship.
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to:
- move about the classroom, school, school grounds, office, and/or off-site locations.
- On some occasions, it may be necessary to move quickly across even or uneven surfaces;
- remain in a stationary position for periods of time;
- operate a computer and other school/office productivity machinery (i.e., iPad, copy machine, computer printer, assistive technology, etc.);
- read material from a computer monitor as well as handwritten or printed matter with or without visual aids;
- position oneself to maintain files and access school/classroom/office materials;
- communicate with others so that information received and given is understood and accurately communicated;
- communicate and collaborate effectively with students, parents, and other staff members in person, via video conference, on the telephone, and/or in writing;
- observe details at close range
- in the school setting, ensure the safety of students;
- multitask and meet multiple demands from several people;
- lifting up to and including 25 lbs
- the noise level in the work environment is moderate to loud.
SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES
The Director of Communications does not supervise other staff members, but may have adult or student interns to supervise.
SELECTION GUIDELINES
- Formal application
- Rating of education and experience
- Oral interviews
- Reference check
- Strong record of work performance in current and previous roles required
- Successful completion of Criminal Records Check (C.O.R.I.), Sexual Offender Record Check (S.O.R.I.), and fingerprints
The Natick Public Schools do not discriminate on the basis of age, race, creed, color, religion, nationality, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions, physical and intellectual differences, immigration status, homeless status, or any other class protected by law.
Date Updated: 5/22/2023