Communications Specialist II - Media Relations

Texas A&M AgriLife Research; College Station (TX); On-site; USD 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, dental, vision insurance

Paid holidays

Paid vacation & sick leave

Retirement plan

Wellness initiative

Job summary

Texas A&M Agrilife Extension Service in College Station seeks a Communications Specialist II - Media Relations to advance the agency's story through media outreach, writing, and social channels. You will collaborate with the Marketing and Communications team to shape strategic messaging and react quickly to opportunities.

This role emphasizes proactive media relations, crisis comms support, content creation, and working with subject matter experts to highlight research and community impact

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Two years related experience.
• Experience in strategic communications, media relations and social media.
• Strong written and verbal communication; ability to multitask.

Responsibilities

• Develop and implement media outreach strategies to secure coverage.
• Monitor media trends and report on impact of coverage.
• Cultivate relationships with journalists and media outlets.
• Draft press releases, features and op-eds.
• Manage social media content to support media relations.
• Collaborate with internal teams to align messaging and content.

Skills

Media relations

Social media

Writing & editing

Public speaking

Education

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent

Two years related experience

Tools

Cision

Content management system

Job description

Job Title
Communications Specialist II - Media Relations

Job Title
Communications Specialist II - Media Relations
Agency
Texas A&M Agrilife Extension Service
Department
Marketing and Communications
Proposed Minimum Salary
Commensurate
Job Location
College Station, Texas
Job Type
Staff
Job Description

About Texas A&M AgriLife

Texas A&M AgriLife is comprised of the following Texas A&M University System members:

• Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service
• Texas A&M AgriLife Research
• College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Texas A&M University
• Texas A&M Forest Service
• Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory

As the nation’s largest most comprehensive agriculture program, Texas A&M AgriLife brings together a college and four state agencies focused on agriculture and life sciences within The Texas A&M University System. With over 5,000 employees and a presence in every county across the state, Texas A&M AgriLife is uniquely positioned to improve lives, environments and the Texas economy through education, research, extension and service.

Position Information

The Communications Specialist II plays a critical role integrating our media relations strategy into our digital communications channels like AgriLife Today, key public entry point websites and social media. This role, designed to provide space for quick, creative responses to ongoing opportunities and trends within the third-party media. The individual within this role will work cross-functionally across the Texas A&M AgriLife Marketing and Communications team as well as with subject matter experts from across Texas A&M AgriLife to identify opportunities and create positive awareness for the brand and its key initiatives.

Responsibilities

Media Relations

• Develop and implement media outreach strategies to secure coverage for and in support of Texas A&M AgriLife initiatives and priorities.
• Monitor media trends and track coverage to assess the impact and effectiveness of media relations efforts through prompt and accurate reporting.
• Cultivate and maintain relationships with journalists, reporters, and media outlets relevant to our mission and audience.
• Pitch story ideas, respond to media inquiries and manage press releases to maximize media exposure and positive coverage.
• Distribute event advances, stories, press releases via content management system, Cision.
• Respond and manage, in a timely manner, day-to-day media requests and needs for the brand.
• Support the digital communications strategy by ideating new opportunities to align media efforts across websites, social media, etc.
• Support in disseminating guidelines, best practices, and training across Texas A&M AgriLife.
• Support key media press events statewide.
• Assist in crisis communications and issue management efforts.

Writing and Storytelling

• Create engaging and high-quality written content, including press releases, feature articles, and op-eds.
• Develop quick content in response to trending, emerging or crisis issues.
• Identify opportunities and craft compelling narratives that highlight Texas A&M AgriLife’s achievements, research breakthroughs, and community impact.
• Collaborate with internal teams and subject matter experts across Texas A&M AgriLife to gather information, conduct interviews and ensure accuracy and consistency in all written materials.
• Edit and proofread content to uphold high standards of clarity, grammar, and style.

Social Media

• Create engaging and relevant content for social media to support the media relations strategy.
• Ideate opportunities and develop content to quickly respond to trending topics or responsive trends in the news and media.
• Develop a system and create content to share key media relations hits across the key brand social media channels.
• Explore the use of social media as a tool to connect with outlets, reporters, and influencers.

Other Duties

• Performs other duties as assigned.

Required Education And Experience

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Two years of related experience.

Required Knowledge, Skills And Abilities

• Experience within or a strong desire to learn strategic communications, including disciplines like media relations, social media, etc.
• Ability to multitask and work cooperatively with others.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Strong interpersonal and organizational skills.
• Ability to present information clearly and concisely.

What You Need To Know

Salary: Pay Grade: 9.

Compensation for this position is commensurate based on the selected candidate’s qualifications.

Why Work at Texas A&M AgriLife?

When you choose to work for Texas A&M AgriLife, you become part of an organization that is an established leader in agriculture and life sciences with a wide range of capabilities to meet the needs of our statewide, national, and international constituents.

• Health, dental, vision, life and long-term disability insurance with Texas A&M AgriLife contributing to employee health and basic life premiums
• 12-15 days of annual paid holidays
• Up to eight hours of paid sick leaveand at leasteight hours of paid vacation each month
• Automatic enrollment in theTeacher Retirement System of Texas
• Employee Wellness Initiative for Texas A&M AgriLife

All positions are security-sensitive. Applicants are subject to a criminal history investigation, and employment is contingent upon the institution’s verification of credentials and/or other information required by the institution’s procedures, including the completion of the criminal history check.

Equal Opportunity/Veterans/Disability Employer.