Astronomy Content Strategist

The Astronomy Content Strategist is an integral member of the Education and Public Outreach team. Responsibilities for this position include creating Social Media Implementation plans, determining effective social media platforms, building and engaging online communities and creating the workflow for planning a social media communications calendar. This position strongly contributes communications and astronomy expertise to the content generated for all EPO Construction deliverables.

Essential Functions

• Responsible for creating and determining social media strategy. Delegates work and assigns responsibilities in order to execute social media strategy.
• Creates, develops and maintains EPO’s social media strategy and implementation plan – determining content and when, how, and what EPO will share in Operations, including selecting the most appropriate platforms
• Creates and develops social media campaigns in alignment with EPO and Project key messages and communications goals
• Stays current with social media trends to maximize EPO impacts and inform strategies
• Creates engaging social media content that resonates with the general public
• Develops a roadmap for building an engaging and representative online community.
• Identifies social media influencers and builds relationships that will advance EPO Communications goals in Operations
• Establishes measurable goals for the EPO social media effort and creates analytics to determine strategies to best serve current and future audiences
• Creates content across the entire EPO program including website articles, videos, graphics, images, etc.
• Applies Astronomy knowledge in order to provide interesting narratives to communicate discoveries to the general public
• Collaborates on the style and content of graphics and images used throughout the EPO program
• Collaborates with technical and non-technical professionals across teams, including efforts to synchronize communications calendars
• Responsible for communicating, collaborating on and supporting strategies for EPO communications
• Make decisions on EPO’s social media and communications efforts
• All AURA employees are responsible for the proper management and control of all AURA property within their work area, whether assigned to them or someone else. This responsibility includes reporting any known missing, stolen, or non-working property in their work area to their supervisor or the AURA Property Officer.
• Responsible for ensuring compliance with government award terms and conditions assigned to this position or subordinates of this position as defined in the Vela Award Management system.

Other Functions:

• Other duties as assigned

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Astronomy, Physics, Communications, or related field
• Experience creating social media campaigns, calendars, and content across multiple platforms
• Sufficient Astronomy background to provide context for Rubin discoveries to the general public
• Demonstrated ability to create engaging social media content and foster a sense of community among followers
• Dedicated interest in fostering a welcoming and accessible community – both for the audience and in the content we feature
• Experience using analytics to track the impact of your social media effort and inform future content creation
• Ability to communicate using a variety of media including short- and long-form writing, photos, graphics, and videos
• Ability to set goals, work independently, and manage your own projects

Preferences

• Advanced degree in Astronomy or equivalent experience teaching/communicating astronomy
• Experience working on a professional Communications team
• Familiarity with tools/software used to schedule social media calendars
• Interest in citizen science, education, and/or content for informal science centers

Work Environment

This position operates in a professional office environment and routinely utilizes standard office equipment, including computers, phones, and copiers. The work environment is generally quiet and may involve working in close proximity to others, depending on the needs of the specific function.

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Must be able to remain in a stationary position at least 50% of the time.
• Occasional need to move about inside the office environment to access files, office tools, attendance in a meeting room, etc.
• Constantly operates a computer and other office productivity tools that require fine motor skills, such as a calculator, copy machine, computer printer, etc.
• May occasionally need to position self to maintain computer and related tools.
• Seldomly needed to move objects up to 10 pounds.
• Constant communication with other individuals. Must be able to discern and exchange information as appropriate to the situation.
• Constant need to distinguish, discern, and identify a variety of objects and fine details with accuracy.
• Some travel may be necessary in or outside the contiguous United States including travel to the various observatory sites (Arizona, Chile and Hawai`i).
• Occasional work at high elevation summit sites may be required (summit elevations range from 6,800 feet to 14,000 feet).

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by individuals assigned to this position. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities and skills required by personnel so classified.

Salary Range

$72,000 - $82,000. The final salary will depend on skills, qualifications and experience.

AURA offers an excellent benefits package including paid time off and retirement plan contributions, competitive salary commensurate with experience, and a very attractive work environment. Details on benefits can be found at Benefits by Location - Aura Human Resources

How to Apply:

Apply by Friday, April 18th for priority consideration. This position will remain open until it is filled. Please submit a cover letter and a CV or resume, PDF files preferred. Please name any attachments with the following format: LastName DocName.

Individuals needing assistance with the employment process can request assistance at employment@aura-astronomy.org.