Senior Program Officer, Earned Media and Leadership Voice

The Business of HLTH Podcast; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 173,000 - 260,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive benefits

Paid time off

Paid family leave

Retirement contribution

Regional holidays

Employee communities

Job summary

The Foundation seeks a strategic communications leader to drive proactive media engagement for the U.S. Program, building trusted relationships with reporters across education and technology.

You will shape earned media strategies and public narratives, while staffing USP leadership for external engagements and crafting compelling blog posts, op-eds, and social content. You will guide media analysis, coordinate with central Communications, and mentor colleagues on interviews and public

Qualifications

• Significant experience in public relations, earned media, or strategic communications.
• Track record of placing stories and leading media relationships across outlets.
• Experience developing and leading executive-level communications, including remarks and briefings.
• Extensive knowledge of the U.S. education landscape and key audiences.
• Experience designing and implementing earned media strategies for complex orgs.

Responsibilities

• Lead proactive and reactive media engagement for USP, coordinating with Communications on media inquiries.
• Build relationships with reporters and influential voices across education, workforce, and technology media.
• Develop and implement earned media strategies for announcements and research releases.
• Lead spokesperson activities, including conference appearances, remarks, blogs, op-eds, and social content.
• Provide voice support and materials for leadership, including LinkedIn content and briefing materials.
• Provide media training and strategic counsel to colleagues preparing for interviews or events.
• Lead media analysis to set goals, track trends, and inform strategy.
• Grow and maintain a network of champions to amplify USP priorities.

Skills

Public relations

Earned media

Strategic communications

Executive communications

Media relations

Education

Advanced degree or equivalent

Tools

Media analytics tools

Job description

The Foundation

We are the largest nonprofit fighting poverty, disease, and inequity around the world. Founded on a simple premise: people everywhere, regardless of identity or circumstances, should have the chance to live healthy, productive lives. We believe our employees should reflect the rich diversity of the global populations we aim to serve. We provide an exceptional benefits package to employees and their families which include comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage with no premiums, generous paid time off, paid family leave, foundation-paid retirement contribution, regional holidays, and opportunities to engage in several employee communities. As a workplace, we’re committed to creating an environment for you to thrive both personally and professionally.

The Foundation

We are the largest nonprofit fighting poverty, disease, and inequity around the world. Founded on a simple premise: people everywhere, regardless of identity or circumstances, should have the chance to live healthy, productive lives. We believe our employees should reflect the rich diversity of the global populations we aim to serve. We provide an exceptional benefits package to employees and their families which include comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage with no premiums, generous paid time off, paid family leave, foundation-paid retirement contribution, regional holidays, and opportunities to engage in several employee communities. As a workplace, we’re committed to creating an environment for you to thrive both personally and professionally.

The Team

The USP Communications team operates as a cross-cutting function in service of the U.S. Program division’s mission to ensure that people navigating U.S. education systems and job markets can develop the knowledge, skills, and agency needed to thrive in their communities — such that race, ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status are no longer predictors of educational attainment and economic mobility. The team advances this mission by shaping the public narrative, building field understanding, and expanding the messenger network around USP’s programmatic and policy priorities. In a rapidly evolving information environment — where media landscapes are fragmenting, AI tools are reshaping content production, and the demand for credible institutional voices is intensifying — the team brings together earned media, digital communications, and strategic voice capabilities to translate complex investment strategies into compelling, accessible content for policymakers, practitioners, grantees, and the broader field.

Your Role

You are responsible for leading proactive and reactive media engagement on behalf of the U.S. Program, building and sustaining relationships with reporters and influential voices across the education and technology media landscape, and developing and implementing earned media strategies that advance USP’s programmatic and policy priorities. You also serve as the primary lead for USP President voice activities — identifying and staffing conference appearances and learning trips, developing public remarks, creating written content for blogs, op-eds, and social media, and supporting leadership across the U.S. Leadership Team in their external communications. You bring mastery-level expertise in earned media, executive communications, and public affairs, with a strong understanding of the U.S. education field and the media dynamics shaping it.

What You'll Do

• Lead proactive and reactive media engagement for USP, coordinating with the foundation’s central Communications division on media inquiries and developing pitches that advance USP’s strategic priorities across trade, political, best-in-class, and local media outlets.
• Build and sustain relationships with reporters, editors, and influential voices covering education, workforce, and technology — cultivating a media network that expands USP’s reach and credibility over time.
• Develop and implement earned media strategies for USP announcements, research releases, and field moments, translating sophisticated programmatic content into compelling narratives for diverse public audiences.
• Lead USP President voice activities, including identifying and staffing conference appearances and learning trips, developing public remarks, creating written content such as blog posts, op-eds, and social media content, and leading the editorial process for USP leadership’s public-facing communications.
• Provide voice support for the USP Chief of Staff and U.S. Leadership Team, including content development for LinkedIn channels, briefing materials, and preparation for media and public appearances.
• Provide media training and strategic communications counsel to USP colleagues preparing for interviews, public speaking engagements, or other external visibility opportunities.
• Lead media analysis work for USP, establishing earned media goals and benchmarks, tracking coverage trends, and synthesizing insights to advise communications strategy and report progress to leadership.
• Maintain and grow USP’s network of champions — working with colleagues to identify practitioners, researchers, and advocates whose voices amplify USP’s priorities — tracking engagements and identifying opportunities to deploy them strategically across media channels and public venues.
• Own the USP grantee communications inbox, monitor for potential reputational risks, and take action or elevate as appropriate in coordination with team leadership and the central Communications division.
• Own the USP daily clips process, including curation, synthesis, and distribution of relevant media coverage to USP leadership and colleagues, applying a clear and influential communication lens to make the information actionable.
• Coordinate and align with the foundation’s central Communications division to ensure USP media engagement is consistent with foundation-wide brand standards, and communications strategy.
• Support inclusive culture through modeling behaviors and actions; elevate issues in a timely fashion to appropriate stakeholders.

Your Experience

• An advanced degree or equivalent proven experience.
• Significant experience in public relations, earned media, or strategic communications, with a track record of successfully placing stories and leading media relationships across a range of publication types, including trade outlets, political media, and premier national outlets.
• Significant experience developing and leading executive-level communications, including preparing public remarks, briefing materials, and staffing principals for media interviews and public appearances.
• Extensive knowledge of the U.S. education landscape, including salient policy issues, influential media storylines, and key audiences such as district and state leaders, higher education institutional leaders, and federal policymakers.
• Significant experience designing and implementing earned media strategies for complex organizations, including running proactive pitches, reactive media inquiries, and reputational risk communications.
• Experience leading communications agencies and vendors, including contract management and oversight of deliverables.
• Deep knowledge of media analysis methods and tools, including establishing benchmarks, tracking coverage trends, and translating insights into actionable communications strategy.
• Experience working in a matrixed environment and coordinating cross-functionally with internal and external partners to align on messaging, strategy, and priorities.
• Must have unrestricted work authorization in the country where this position is located. The Foundation does not provide immigration-related sponsorship for this role. This includes direct company sponsorship and any work authorization requiring a written submission or other immigration support from the company (eg: H-1B, O-1, L-1, E, OPT, STEM-OPT, CPT, TN, J-1, etc).

Hiring Requirements

As part of our standard hiring process for new employees, employment will be contingent upon successful completion of a background check.

Candidate Accommodations

If you require assistance due to a disability in the application or recruitment process, please submit a request here.

Inclusion Statement

We are dedicated to the belief that all lives have equal value. We strive for a global and cultural workplace that supports ever greater diversity, equity, and inclusion — of voices, ideas, and approaches — and we support this diversity through all our employment practices.

All applicants and employees who are drawn to serve our mission will enjoy equality of opportunity and fair treatment without regard to race, color, age, religion, pregnancy, sex, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, and prior protected activity.

The salary range for this role is $173,000 to $259,600 USD. We recognize high-wage market differences in Seattle and Washington D.C., where our offices are located. The range for this role in these locations is $190,000 to $285,500 USD. As a mission-driven organization, we strive to balance competitive pay with our mission. New hires salaries are typically between the range minimum and the salary range midpoint. Actual placement in the range will depend on a candidate’s job-related skills, experience, and expertise, as evaluated during the interview process.

Hiring Requirements

As part of our standard hiring process for new employees, employment will be contingent upon successful completion of a background check.

Candidate Accommodations

We’re committed to providing an inclusive and accessible hiring experience for all candidates. If you have a disability or medical condition and need an accommodation at any stage of the application or interview process—such as an ASL interpreter, alternative interview format, or physical accessibility support—we’re happy to help. Please contact [e-mail] with the position number and a brief description of your accommodation needs. Requests will be handled confidentially.

Inclusion Statement

We are dedicated to the belief that all lives have equal value. We strive for a global and cultural workplace that supports ever greater diversity, equity, and inclusion — of voices, ideas, and approaches — and we support this diversity through all our employment practices.

All applicants and employees who are drawn to serve our mission will enjoy equality of opportunity and fair treatment without regard to race, color, age, religion, pregnancy, sex, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, and prior protected activity.