Senior Communication Specialist

Ascendium Education Group

Ascendium (formerly Great Lakes Higher Education) has been helping people fulfill their potential through the transformative power of education for over half a century. We promote postsecondary student success in a variety of ways: We’re one of the nation’s biggest higher education philanthropies, awarding tens of millions of dollars per year in grants aimed at helping more low-income students, students of color and first-generation students complete postsecondary degrees and credentials. We help student loan borrowers avoid and recover from the devastating impact of default. And we develop and market products and services that help colleges better support their students’ financial well-being.

https://www.ascendiumeducation.org/careers


Position Details

Senior Communication Specialist
Job
Full-time
12/3/2018
Southwest Wisconsin
Madison, WI

Versatile storyteller needed to join award-winning creative team at mission-driven organization

Are you a seasoned and talented writer and communicator who enjoys crafting and delivering compelling messages about the work of mission-driven nonprofits? Do you thrive in a fast-paced, collaborative environment where highly skilled creative types juggle multiple projects, adapt to constantly shifting demands and always have each other’s backs? Are you passionate about the role postsecondary education can play in expanding life opportunities and reducing social, racial and economic inequities? If you find yourself nodding enthusiastically upon reading those questions, we may have a job for you as a SENIOR COMMUNICATIONS SPECIALIST at Ascendium Education Group.

We’re looking for a hard-working, engaging, collaborative communicator adept at using language to inspire. You must have proven media relations savvy and a strong instinct for figuring out what words and channels will resonate with what audiences.

The individual we bring on board will serve as our primary media liaison, which means you must know how to boil down complicated information into a digestible form that captures its essence—i.e. tells the story of what we do. As a member of the writing team, you’ll also produce a variety of other kinds of copy for both internal and external audiences. One day it might be a post for our internal website about a new benefit being offered. The next day it might be talking points about a new grant we’ve awarded or a press release about a fun volunteer event we did with one of our adopted organizations. You will be expected to apply the right voice and tone to each unique assignment while maintaining the highest standards of technical proficiency. You should be comfortable writing in the language of mission, vision and values while recognizing when to inject a bit of levity and pizzazz.

These are the qualifications we’re looking for:

  • 5+ years of experience in journalism, nonprofit communications, advertising or other scribo-centric fields
  • In-depth understanding of media relations
  • Top-notch storytelling chops 
  • Exquisite creative, critical and conceptual thinking 
  • Ability and willingness to edit and proofread material at various stages of development
  • Terrific organizational, problem-solving and coordination skills
  • Superior knowledge of grammar, spelling and punctuation
  • Bonus points for previous experience with philanthropy, higher education access/completion or PR software (e.g. Cision).

Ascendium Education Group employees enjoy an outstanding benefit package designed to provide employees and their families with a high degree of security.



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