AMP: Artists' Meeting Place and Resource Collective

Job Opportunity: Marketing and Communications Manager
Arts for All: LA County Regional Blueprint for Arts Education

The Los Angeles County Arts Commission seeks a full-time Marketing and Communications Manager to support the Arts for All arts education collaborative. Jointly managed by the Los Angeles County Arts Commission and the Los Angeles County Office of Education, Arts for All is a dynamic, county-wide collaboration working to create vibrant classrooms, schools, communities and economies through the restoration of all arts disciplines into the core curriculum for each of Los Angeles' 1.6 million public K-12 students. Currently 44 school districts representing 509,000 students have joined the collaboration. The districts are among the more than 100 partners from the public and private sector dedicated to achieving Arts for All's vision. To learn more about Arts for All, please visit www.lacountyarts.org.
RESPONSIBILITIES
Reporting to the Arts Commission's Director of Communications and working closely with the Director of Arts Education, the Marketing and Communications Manager is responsible for developing, managing and implementing a comprehensive, integrated communications program, aligned with the Arts for All communications plan, that builds and maintains Arts for All as a brand and, by extension, the importance of arts education to the creative economy of Los Angeles County.
Responsibilities include:

* Ensuring a steady flow of information about Arts for All activities, developments and achievements to the collaboration's more than 100 partners and County government stakeholders as well as to the media and educators, parents, students, and arts and business leaders who are not part of the collaboration.

* Establishing an editorial schedule to achieve the above using traditional and new media including the Arts for All Web site; Arts Commission social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, You Tube and Flickr ); opinion platforms in education, general publications and the blogosphere; news and feature outlets on the community, regional, state and national levels; public speaking opportunities; publications of Arts for All partners; special events; Arts for All gatherings including training sessions, Community Arts Team meetings and Advocacy Team meetings; and the Arts for All listserv.

* Establishing communications channels with Arts for All partners to generate information to be used as editorial material and deepen partner relationships, especially Arts for All school districts where the results of the collaboration are happening in classrooms.

* Producing assets for the communications program - including video, audio, press releases, announcements, e-mail blasts, electronic/hard copy press kits geared to different audiences, flyers, invitations, brochures and ads and overseeing their distribution.

* Creating and maintaining an Arts for All style guide for use of the Arts for All logo, graphic identity system and vocabulary.

* Creating and maintaining a crisis communications plan to plan for potential crises that may catch Arts for All off guard.

* Serving as the staff representative on the Communications Action Committee, comprised of Arts for All Executive Committee members and community representatives, and collaborating with and calling on the resources of that committee to help move forward the communications program.

* Training key leadership and partners to be Arts for All spokespeople and coordinating the assignment of spokespeople to opportunities.

* Overseeing the Arts for All Web site to make sure all content is accurate and current and establishing a schedule to provide assets for videos, photos and testimonials that change on a regular basis.

* Handling incoming media requests.

* Reviewing Arts for All publications while they are in process to ensure that they dovetail with the communications program.

* Building, maintaining and updating contact lists for media, Arts for All partners and other stakeholders in a format accessible to Arts for All and other Arts Commission staff.

* Liaising with the Arts for All Development Manager to provide information and assets and ensure that grant proposals align with Arts for All messaging.

* Performing other duties as assigned.

REQUIRED EXPERIENCE/SKILLS
Three years minimum experience in public relations preferably in the non-profit sector including proactive and intensive interfacing with media
* Bachelor's degree from an accredited four year college or university with major course work in journalism, public affairs, the arts, education or a related field
* Outstanding professional written and verbal communication skills with the ability to capture and tell appropriately compelling stories
* Knowledge of new media and how to integrate it into a communications program
* Outstanding people skills to build and maintain relationships with a wide variety of groups and institutions
* Ability to hire, manage and review the work of videographers, photographers, free lance writers and special event managers
* Excellent computer skills, with complete fluency in Word and Excel
* Background in, or knowledge of, arts education desirable but not required

COMPENSATION
The salary range is $48,000-54,000 annually, depending on qualifications, plus benefits (health and dental). This is a full-time contract position.

APPLICATION PROCESS
Candidates are invited to submit a cover letter explaining why this position is of interest, resume, professional writing sample (preferably a press release or a pitch letter to an editor or an editorial), a case study of a media campaign executed by the applicant and resulting coverage and a list of three professional references. All submissions should be emailed to Ms. Linda Chiavaroli at lchiavaroli@arts.lacounty.gov with Arts for All Marketing and Communications Manager as the subject line. Please do not submit any application materials through the US mail or phone regarding the status of the submission. Applications will be reviewed starting on March 9, 2011. Position will remain open until the staffing need is met and may close without advance notice.

BACKGROUND
The Los Angeles County Arts Commission fosters excellence, diversity, vitality, understanding and accessibility of the arts in Los Angeles County. The Arts Commission provides leadership in cultural services for the County, including information and resources for the community, artists, educators, arts organizations and municipalities. To learn more about the Arts Commission, please visit www.lacountyarts.org.

from LA Culture Net