Under the general supervision of the associate dean and director of the New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station (NHAES) and the communications director for the College of Life Sciences and Agriculture (COLSA), the Communications Information Specialist will support the research, teaching and outreach communications missions of the station and college. The Communications Information Specialist will help lead these efforts through content production for storytelling across a variety of content types, including but not limited to articles, social media posts, news releases, directed emails, sound bites, photography, social media quality video, and basic graphic design. The individual would lead the development of a strategic media plan for the NHAES and assist in the development and implementation of the strategic media plan that supports and advances the college's research, teaching and outreach visibility. Through their efforts, the Communications Information Specialist will play a critical role in strengthening the impacts of research and connections among UNH scientists and programs with state and regional communities.

Job Duties/Responsibilities:

• Identifying, producing and effectively disseminating strategic communications (news stories, directed emails, web content, video, photography, social media content) that aligns and enhances the station and college goals to promote faculty, staff, student and programmatic successes/achievements. This includes managing and/or gathering information about recently completed and ongoing research using the NHAES published manuscript database; NHAES annual progress and final project reports; annual COLSA faculty publication and works-in-progress reports; direct interactions with scientists, staff, post-doctoral scholars, graduate and undergraduate students, and the public, and other methods that may be useful. In addition to producing and disseminating communications on a regular basis to specific target stakeholder groups and the general public, there will be periodic contributions to THRIVE, the COLSA's biannual print publication.
• Assisting in the development and execution of a strategic media plan, with a focus on elevating the research, teaching and outreach of the NHAES and college. This includes partnering with the University's office of Communications and Public Affairs and UNH Cooperative Extension, pitching stories and regularly interacting with local and national reporters, collaborating with relevant state and federal government agencies and developing informational content that is pertinent to these groups, among others. Collecting information relevant to assessing the impacts of these efforts.
• Lead the strategic growth and development of the NHAES statewide outreach presence. This would include the management of research field days at UNH farm facilities, organization of research communication events around the state and via virtual forums, trade show participation, and other in-person or virtual events that strengthen the NHAES research outreach mission across diverse communities in New Hampshire., Research, propose and initiate new traditional and digital media strategies to improve communications among scientists, students and college units with internal to UNH and external to UNH stakeholder groups (for example, alumni, corporate and nonprofit partners, government agencies and delegations, regional associations, and others).
• Other related duties as assigned that help advance the communications and outreach missions of the NHAES and COLSA.

Requirements

Minimum Education & Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in journalism, marketing, communications or news media.
• Three years of directly related experience (science writing, social media, web or other content categories).

Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities:

• Effective writing skills with attention to audience, tone and nuance.
• Demonstrated experience with social media.
• Up-to-date knowledge on current trends within scientific communication and higher education.
• Effective interpersonal skills.
• Knowledge of agricultural, natural resource, and environmental science fields.
• Knowledge of the State Agricultural Experiment Station and land-grant university systems.
• Experience with updating a Drupal website and with design tools such as InDesign, Photoshop and Canva, and video editing software.
• Knowledge of higher education and new/emerging trends in communication.

Applicant Instructions: 

Applicants should be prepared to upload the following documents when applying online within the My Experience: Resume/CV section of the application: (Maximum of 5 Documents)

• Resume/CV
• Cover Letter

Applications that are missing any of the required items may not move forward for consideration. Additional uploaded documents not requested in the position announcement will not be reviewed.

Please be advised that this position is supported by external sponsor funding. As such, continued employment in this role is contingent upon the availability of those external funds. If, for any reason, the sponsor funding is reduced or discontinued, employment may be subject to modification or termination in accordance with applicable policies and procedures. 

The University of New Hampshire is an R1 Carnegie classification research institution providing comprehensive, high-quality undergraduate and graduate programs of distinction. UNH is located in Durham on a 188-acre campus, 60 miles north of Boston and 8 miles from the Atlantic coast and is convenient to New Hampshire’s lakes and mountains. There is a student enrollment of 13,000 students, with a full-time faculty of over 600, offering 90 undergraduate and more than 70 graduate programs. The University actively promotes a dynamic learning environment in which qualified individuals of differing perspectives, life experiences, and cultural backgrounds pursue academic goals with mutual respect and shared inquiry.

EEO Statement

The University System of New Hampshire is an Equal Opportunity/Equal Access employer. The University System is committed to creating an environment that values and supports diversity and inclusiveness across our campus communities and encourages applications from qualified individuals who will help us achieve this mission. The University System prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or marital status.

Compensation Pay Range:

The pay range for this position is listed above. Actual offer will be based on skills, qualifications, experience, and internal equity, in addition to relevant business considerations. More information on benefits can be found here: USNH Employee Benefits | Human Resources

Location: