Website Drew School
Position Title: Director of Communications
Reports to: Director of Advancement
Hours/Classification: 12-Months Full-Time; Exempt; In-Person
Desired Start Date: after August 1, 2023
Salary: $90-110K DOE
Mission: Drew knows and believes in teenagers. We engage each student in a process of intellectual discovery to develop an individual voice, the confidence to express it, and the empathy to understand its impact.
Drew: what high school should be.
Founded in 1908, Drew is an innovative, progressive, independent high school located in the heart of San Francisco. The school’s experienced, dedicated, and passionate faculty and dynamic student body form the core of Drew’s supportive and engaging community. Drew aims to develop and amplify each student’s individual voice, encouraging each student to engage in a process of intellectual discovery, personal growth, and empathic learning. Drew’s curriculum focuses on experiential learning, global awareness, local community involvement, citizenship, and support of individual talents and strengths.
General summary
This is an exciting opportunity for a communications professional to join an innovative, mission-driven school in San Francisco and build on the school’s upcoming rebrand and strengthen market position.
The Director of Communications reports to the Director of Advancement and works closely with the Head of School and Senior Leadership Team to promote deeper community engagement and improved visibility beyond the school community to positively impact enrollment, community building and fundraising initiatives.
The Director of Communications will work to align the school with its core values and brand positioning by developing and executing communication strategies and programs that will enhance Drew’s brand reputation, drive the institution’s growth, and improve stakeholder experience.
The candidate will be expected to work without a support staff so must be eager to roll up their sleeves to get work done at both the strategic and executional levels.
Essential duties and responsibilities
Engage deeply with the school community in order to develop compelling communication goals across critical functions including academics, admissions, advancement, student life, and athletics.
Partner with an outside firm for a rebrand and work with departments to ensure consistency of its application, particularly around brand voice and visual identity.
Manage the significant volume of school communications to a wide range of community stakeholders (faculty, staff, board, parents/guardians, students, and alumnae) and evaluate the impact of such communications through metric analysis.
Lead the editorial direction, design, production, and distribution of all print, video, digital, and social media content/channels; including the weekly newsletter to the community.
Support Head of School in writing and presentation materials.
Actively work with Admissions to communicate with prospective students and parents and with the Advancement Department on fundraising and community building initiatives.
Partner with the Senior Leadership Team on strategy and communications in the roll-out of the school strategic plan.
Create content for and manage school website (drewschool.org on Blackbaud platform) and create microsites for specific projects and events as needed.
Manage social media channels, providing guidance to faculty content creators and assessing overall effectiveness and strategy.
Maintain/update internal website (DrewNet) for relevant communications content (calendars, events, announcements, resource boards, etc.).
Partner with relevant departments in the creation of communication materials for school-sponsored events that deepen brand identity.
Guide public relations and develop journalistic relationships to secure earned media.
Manage quick response/crisis communications efforts.
Collect, create, and maintain a digital library in Google drive of photographic and video images of school life.
Work with external contractors for production of content.
Qualifications and Skills
A strategic, mission-driven individual with a strong understanding of branding, communication, and public relations.
A dynamic storyteller and strong writer with the ability to fully embody and sustain a credible brand voice through outstanding communication and copy-editing skills.
Digitally savvy with a strong design aesthetic and a working knowledge of Canva, Illustrator, Blackbaud, social media platforms.
Strong interpersonal skills that can engage various stakeholders in the school community.
Ability to edit and produce video and photography, as well as manage contractors with that expertise.
A consummate team player who can move fluidly from the strategic to the executional and back.
Ability to multitask, manage and prioritize competing demands.
Experience in social media strategy development and deployment.
Experience in content creation, design, and production.
Experience in Independent Schools.
Experience in a public relations/communications agency is a plus.
Non-Discrimination Policy
Drew School of San Francisco admits students of any race, color, religion, sexual orientation, national and ethnic origin, or handicap to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities of the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, scholarship programs, athletic and other school-administered programs.
Drew School actively seeks to advance the equity and diversity of our community in our admissions and hiring. Drew School is an equal opportunity employer. Salary and benefits are commensurate with or exceed those of our peer schools in the San Francisco Bay Area and with NAIS schools.
