Southwest Tennessee Community College is a comprehensive, multicultural, public, open—access college. Southwest has five campuses/centers from which it offers over 100 programs and over 20 technical certificate programs.

We foster student success, transform lives, and increase the educational level of a growing community in Shelby County. Southwest is a Tennessee Board of Regents institution, accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

Title: Communication Specialist

Employee Classification: Other Professionals

Institution: Southwest Tennessee Community College

Department: Marketing and Communications

Campus Location: STCC - Multiple Campus Locations

Job Summary

This is a full-time, fiscal year appointment position, reporting to the Vice President of Communications and Institutional Advancement. The Communication Specialist will serve as a media and content specialist, and multi-media journalist for the Marketing and Communications department at Southwest Tennessee Community College.

The Communication Specialist will be a member of a fast-paced team who work directly with senior leadership in planning strategic public relations campaigns to consistently secure results for maximum coverage of student and faculty achievements, and overall successes of the College.

Job Duties

• Media Relations
  • Develop and drive media relations programs including actively identifying media opportunities and news angles, campaign development, media pitching, coverage tracking and measurement, and coverage reports.
  • Working knowledge of concepts and principles of news, media communications and media relations.
• Social Media
  • Creatively use content, campaigns and influencer engagement to support and amplify media activities.
  • Demonstrated experience with creating quality, compelling social media content to help generate visibility for initiatives and events.
  • Experience monitoring news sources to post on social media sites.
  • Experience summarizing news articles and reports for use on social media.
  • Ability to think creatively to identify topics for use on various social media platforms; experience altering content based on social media platform.
  • Experience with the hands-on skills related to posting content, images, and videos on social networking platforms while tailoring messages to specific audiences, ideally for a college program or educational product.
• Writing and Content
  • Utilize excellent writing and fast editing capabilities to help shape stories and messaging.
  • Develop a variety of content for a range of audiences, including creating and producing press releases, messaging and positioning platforms, website copy, op-eds, media backgrounders, fact sheets, social media posts, video scripts, talking points and Q&A’s, etc.
  • Good written, verbal, interpersonal communication skills and political acumen.
  • Proven ability and working experience to write copy and edit for accuracy and style.
  • Knowledge of proper English grammar, spelling, punctuation, sentence construction and effective journalistic style.
  • Ability to write for executive leadership. Ability to write for multiple audiences, particularly student audiences.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree.
  
• Minimum of three (3) to five (5) years of relevant professional experience in media production, journalism, communications, or a related field.
  
• Strong portfolio demonstrating writing skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in higher education or nonprofit environment.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Excellent storytelling, writing, and editing skills.
  
• Creative thinking and problem solving.
  
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills.
  
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a team environment.
  
• Ability to manage multiple projects and meet deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
  
• Knowledge of social media platforms and content trends.

Physical Demands / Working Conditions

• Must be available to work evenings and weekends for events.
  
• Some travel between campuses or to off-site locations are required.

The intent of this job description is to provide a representation of the types of duties and responsibilities that will be required of positions given this title and shall not be construed as a declaration of the total specific duties and responsibilities of any particular position. Employees may be directed to perform job-related tasks other than those specifically presented in this description.

Candidates who are called for an interview must notify Human Resources in writing at least five (5) days in advance of any reasonable accommodation needed prior to the date of the interview.

First consideration will be given to current Southwest Tennessee Community College employees who meet the minimum qualifications for the position.

In order to be considered for the position, the following items must be uploaded:

• Resume
• Cover letter
• Unofficial Transcripts

A summary of our benefits can be found below: 

https://www.southwest.tn.edu/hr/benefits-overview.php

Incomplete applications will not be considered.

The TBR does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, ethnicity, or national origin, sex, disability, age, status as a protected veteran or any other class protected by Federal or State laws and regulations and by Tennessee Board of Regents policies with respect to employment, programs, and activities. 

The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding nondiscrimination policies:  LeVetta Hudson, Vice President of People & Culture, myhr@southwest.tn.edu, 737 Union Ave, Memphis, TN 38103, 901-333-5000. See the full non-discrimination policy.