Strategic Communications Lead, Academic Affairs (Remote)

Empire State University; New York (NY); Remote; USD 65,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

Empire State University in New York is seeking a Strategic Communications Manager to partner with the Office of Academic Affairs (OAA) in planning, developing, and assessing communications that advance academic priorities and engagement. The role translates complex initiatives into clear messages for faculty, staff and stakeholders.

This position includes coordinating web and SharePoint content, messaging for faculty processes, and collaboration with Communications and Marketing to ensure

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Communications, Marketing, English, Public Administration, Higher Education Administration, or related field.
• Professional experience developing, coordinating, and implementing communications for academic audiences.
• Excellent writing, editing, proofreading, and message-framing skills, including the ability to communicate complex information clearly and accurately.
• Experience managing web content, SharePoint sites, content calendars, or similar digital communication platforms.
• Strong organizational, project management, and follow-through skills, including the ability to manage multiple deadlines and priorities with appropriate independence.
• Ability to exercise sound judgment, maintain confidentiality, and collaborate effectively with leadership, subject matter experts, and cross-functional partners.
• Strong skills with the MS Office productivity suite of tools.

Responsibilities

• Develop, draft, coordinate, and distribute regular and just-in-time OAA communications to the Empire State University community.
• Advise on messaging strategy, audience needs, timing, tone, and channels for OAA leadership.
• Translate complex academic priorities into clear, accurate communications for faculty, staff, and stakeholders.
• Ensure consistency in voice, tone, formatting, accessibility, and branding across OAA materials.
• Provide planning and support for live video community forums with the Provost.
• Lead support for OAA and the Provost's communication needs for events and meetings.
• Coordinate communications for faculty review, promotion, tenure, and related processes.
• Develop proactive communication plans, reminders, updates, and deadlines.
• Maintain communication schedules and track key dates.
• Ensure faculty-facing communications reflect policy and institutional priorities.
• Prepare timely communications in response to institutional needs and deadlines.
• Develop talking points, announcements, and updates for Academic Affairs initiatives.
• Maintain and update OAA web pages and SharePoint sites for accessibility and accuracy.
• Organize digital content and improve findability of OAA materials.
• Support development of templates and workflows for consistent communications.

Skills

Excellent writing

Editing

Message framing

Project management

MS Office

Education

Bachelor's degree in Communications, Marketing, English, Public Administration, Higher Education Administration, or related field

Tools

SharePoint

Microsoft 365

Job description

Empire State University in New York is seeking a Strategic Communications Manager to partner with the Office of Academic Affairs (OAA) in planning, developing, and assessing communications that advance academic priorities and engagement. The role translates complex initiatives into clear messages for faculty, staff and stakeholders.

This position includes coordinating web and SharePoint content, messaging for faculty processes, and collaboration with Communications and Marketing to ensure