Communications Director

Stanford University; Palo Alto, Northern (CA, KY); On-site; USD 129,000 - 135,000; Full time

Job summary

Stanford University invites applications for a Communications Director in the School of Humanities and Sciences. The hybrid role requires a minimum of three days per week on site at the Stanford campus, with a focus on strategic leadership and hands-on production of communications across channels.

The successful candidate will craft creative strategies to expand recognition on campus and in the public sphere, manage newsletters and web content, and pitch stories while coordinating freelance

Qualifications

• Subject matter affinity in ethics, technology ethics, civil dialogue.
• Proactive ownership: brainstorm and execute initiatives; collaborate within a team.
• Campus & media relations: cultivate journalist contacts; pitch stories; translate scholarship for public audiences.
• Hands-on proficiency with digital tools and CMS platforms; familiarity with email marketing; social media.
• Experience directing freelancers to produce assets, event collateral, and narratives on time and within budget.
• Data-informed mindset: use analytics to track reach and refine strategies.

Responsibilities

• Lead and produce communications strategies for campus and public audiences.
• Create newsletters, update web pages, and draft social media content.
• Possibility to hire contractors to support work.
• Provide writing, copyediting, and content decisions with strong judgment in high-visibility tasks.

Skills

Subject matter affinity

Ownership & collaboration

Campus & media relations

Digital tools

Vendor & project management

Data-informed mindset

Tools

WordPress

Drupal

Mailchimp

Social media

Adobe Creative Cloud

Canva

Job description

This position has been deemed critical by the School of Humanities and Sciences Dean’s Office and is exempt from the hiring freeze.

Work Arrangement:

This is a hybrid position based on the Stanford campus, with a minimum of3 days per week on site.

Budgeted Salary:

The budgeted base salary range for this position is $129,000 to $135,000 annually.

Department/Program Description:

The School of Humanities and Sciences (H&S) is the foundation of a liberal arts education at Stanford. The school encompasses 24 departments and 25 interdisciplinary programs. H&S is home to fundamental and applied research, where free, open, and critical inquiry is pursued across disciplines. As the university’s largest school, H&S serves as the foundation of a Stanford undergraduate education no matter which discipline students pursue as a major. Graduate students work alongside world-renowned faculty to pursue and shape foundational research that leads to breakthroughs and discoveries that shed new light on the past, influence the present, and shape the future. Together, faculty and students in H&S engage in inspirational teaching, learning, and research every day. The McCoy Family Center for Ethics in Society prepares students, researchers, and community leaders to face the toughest ethical challenges of our times – in government, industry, universities, and everyday life. Through education, research, and convenings, we work to integrate ethical reflection into decision‑making at all levels. Our current areas of focus are technology ethics and civil dialogue. Our programming reaches audiences across campus and beyond and includes: an undergraduate honors program, ethics courses, varied fellowships, research collaborations, and public events with renowned speakers. Our work in the area of technology ethics presents opportunities for partnerships across Silicon Valley to advance human values and ethical reflection in technological development. Our civil dialogue programming involves collaborations across campus and with other institutions to prepare students to engage in disagreement with moral courage, respect, and intellectual humility.

Position Summary

We seek a proactive Communications Director to serve as both strategic lead and hands‑on producer for our communications efforts. Working closely with the Center team and faculty, this person will envision and implement creative strategies to expand our recognition across campus and in the public sphere. As a communications team of one, this role requires a nimble, collaborative self‑starter who moves comfortably between big‑picture planning and day‑to‑day execution—energized by pitching stories or experimenting with new media formats as well as by building newsletters, updating web pages, and drafting social media content. The Communications Director will have the opportunity to experiment with new ideas and can hire contractors to support their work. The ideal candidate will have exceptional writing and copyediting skills, rigorous attention to detail, the ability to use analytics to inform content decisions, and sound judgment in high‑visibility work and stakeholder relationship management.

This is a 100%, exempt, continuing position. For full consideration, please include a resume and cover letter with your application.

Preferred Requirements

Additional Desired Qualifications Include:

• Subject matter affinity: Demonstrated interest in ethics, particularly current areas of focus on technology ethics and civil dialogue, with curiosity to learn more in an interdisciplinary setting.
• Proactive Ownership & Collaboration: Proven track record as a self-directed producer who can brainstorm creative initiatives, follow through independently, and collaborate effectively within a team
• Campus & Media Relations: Strong background in media relations, including cultivating journalist contacts, pitching stories, translating complex scholarship for public audiences, and building and maintaining a strong network on campus.
• Tactical Production & Tech Savvy: Hands‑on proficiency with core digital tools, including modern web CMS platforms (e.g., WordPress, Drupal), email marketing services (e.g., Mailchimp), social media platforms, and basic visual/layout tools (Adobe Creative Cloud, Canva). Openness to integrate AI tools where appropriate.
• Vendor & Project Management: Experience directing freelance designers, writers, and photographers to produce varied assets, event collateral, and narrative stories on time and within budget.
• Data-Informed Mindset: Experience using analytics across platforms to track reach, test new ideas, and refine strategies.