American Atheists is seeking a Director of Public Relations

American Atheists is excited to offer a full-time Director of Public Relations position to begin as soon as possible.

American Atheists is the leading atheistic organization in the country on speaking out to the media and the public about coming out as atheists. We challenge Americans to keep religion and government separate and urge atheists who have not publicly declared their atheism to do so. We run large public ad campaigns, host some of the largest nontheistic conventions in the country, and publish a national magazine. As our membership explodes, we need a full-time Public Relations Director to help steer us into the future.

Position Description

Reporting to the President, the Public Relations Director will set and guide the strategy for all public relations messages and communications, including but not limited to website content, blogging, Facebook content, Twitter messages, and other social media to consistently articulate American Atheists’ mission. The Public Relations Director will ensure that American Atheists is viewed as the primary source, disseminator, and conduit of information within the diverse network and constituent base of the nontheistic community.

The Public Relations Director will also be responsible for handling, establishing, and coordinating contacts with national commercial and nonprofit media including, but not limited to, MSNBC, FOX News, and NPR as well as newspapers, online news sources, and bloggers.

The Public Relations Director will work closely with a senior peer group within the organization.

The Public Relations Director will push American Atheists’ “hard-line” atheist positions in the movement and media.

The Public Relations Director must live or relocate to within commuting distance of the headquarters of American Atheists in Cranford, New Jersey.

Responsibilities

• Develop, implement, and evaluate the annual public relations plan for American Atheists’ network of audiences in collaboration with the American Atheists team and constituents.
• Lead and formulate online content that engages audiences and results in measurable action, such as memberships. Decide who, where, and when to disseminate such content.
• Put communication vehicles in place to create momentum and awareness as well as to test the effectiveness of said communications activities.
• Manage the development, distribution, and maintenance of all print and electronic devices including, but not limited to, publishing a quarterly membership newsletter and updating brochures.
• Coordinate webpage maintenance to ensure that new and consistent information (article links, stories, and events) is posted regularly.
• Track and measure the level of media engagement within the network over time.
• Maintain and establish media contacts with commercial and nonprofit national media to maximize messaging and visibility of President and organization. Must be able to handle all media contacts, including assisting President with press and interview requests and appointments. Must be able to take interviews on the fly and be willing to be a spokesperson for the organization as needed.

Qualifications

American Atheists is seeking an accomplished Public Relations Director with the following qualifications:

• A four-year degree from an accredited college or university with a major in an appropriate field.
• At least 3 years of public relations and/or communications experience with one or more nonprofit organizations, ideally in an “in-house” leadership role, and covering areas such as website content and newsletters.
• A demonstrated ability to handle national commercial and nonprofit media contacts and interviews.
• Experience as a spokesperson for an organization, business, or cause.
• A demonstrated commitment to the secular movement is required as well as ability to show comfort and commitment to disseminating American Atheists’ core message to the public.
• The ability to take knowledge and transform it into exciting and useful messages, and disseminate it to the right audiences through the best distribution channel(s).
• Excellent writing/editing and verbal communication skills.
• Experience with Meltwater or other media contact services.

The following qualifications are also vital:

• Knowledge of Raiser’s Edge.
• Highly collaborative style; experience developing and implementing communications strategies.
• High energy, maturity, and leadership skills with the ability to serve as a unifying force and to position public relations/communications needs and opportunities in short-term and long-term planning.
• Sincere commitment to work collaboratively with all constituent groups, including staff, board members, volunteers, donors, program participants, and other supporters.
• Self-starter, able to work independently, and entrepreneurial; enjoys creating and implementing new initiatives.

Benefits

America Atheists is an exciting and growing nonprofit where individuals’ ideas and creativity are welcome and respected. Salary is commensurate with experience. Other benefits include employer-paid health care insurance, paid vacation, paid sick time, and comp time.

To Apply:

Please send your resume with three professional references, cover letter with salary expectation and an indication about how soon you would be able to start; and a writing sample, preferably a press release, to [email protected] no later than January 25, 2013. Candidates will be evaluated application materials are submitted because American Atheists is eager to fill this position. Please no phone calls or applications by mail.