Director of Media, Communications & Marketing

SADD works to empower, engage, mobilize, and change students and adult allies on the issues of mobility safety, substance use, mental health, and leadership development. SADD has a network of dedicated professionals who serve in various positions nationwide, with SADD chapters spanning all 50 states and internationally. We're trying to change the world through a peer-to-peer model of school and community-based chapters.

Description: Director of Media, Communications & Marketing is a senior strategic leader responsible for shaping, protecting, and amplifying the voice of SADD through a variety of channels. This role owns the full communications and marketing enterprise, from brand voice and media relations to digital strategy, content creation, campaign development, and strong storytelling. As a member of the Senior Leadership Team, this Director ensures that every public-facing communication reflects SADD's mission, advances organizational goals, serves grant compliance requirements, and builds lasting credibility with youth audiences, government partners, donors, and the public. This is a high-visibility, high-accountability role suited for a seasoned communications professional who thrives at the intersection of mission-driven purpose, fast-paced creativity, flexibility and willingness to pivot, along with the ability to manage multi-channel marketing.

The role is remote; you will not report to a physical office. However, you may be required to be on-site at events and schools.

Reports to: Executive Director

Classification: Full-Time, Exempt | Senior Leadership

Direct Reports: Media interns

Key duties and responsibilities include:

• Develop, own, and execute a comprehensive multi-year organizational communications strategy, including national messaging, audience targeting, theme programs and correlating calendars, and alignment with the national strategies.
• Serve as the primary steward of the SADD brand while establishing identity standards, messaging consistency, and brand voice across all internal and external channels.
• Lead executive communications, including drafting leadership statements, board communications, organizational announcements, marketing templates and resources and, when needed, crisis messaging.
• Advise the Executive Director and Senior Leadership Team on communications positioning, reputational status and public affairs opportunities.
• Develop and maintain an annual marketing calendar that integrates campaigns, grant timelines, advocacy moments, and organizational milestones.
• Build, manage, and grow a proactive national media relations program that cultivates relationships with local, regional, and national media outlets across print, broadcast, and digital.
• Prepare executive leadership for media appearances, interviews, and public-facing events.
• Develop and distribute press releases, media advisories, talking points, op-eds, and media briefs for organizational initiatives, campaigns, and events.
• Monitor media coverage and press mentions; track share of voice, sentiment and report outcomes to leadership.
• Own and lead the organization's social media platforms, website strategy, SEO, and digital campaign infrastructure.
• Set and monitor performance benchmarks across all digital channels; produce regular analytics reports with actionable insights for leadership.
• Co-manage SADD's website; ensuring content currency, functionality, accessibility, SEO optimization, and alignment with organizational priorities; manage web hosting and platform vendor relationships.
• Partner with field staff and State Coordinators to localize digital content that reflects state and chapter-level activity while meeting grant documentation requirements.
• Develop student-generated content amplification and engagement with the Student Leadership Council.
• Design and lead national campaign frameworks - including flagship initiatives such as 100 Safest Days of Summer, Red Ribbon Week, National Teen Driver Safety Week (NTDSW), and prom season activations.
• Lead co-marketing and co-branding efforts with national partners, sponsors, and government funders; develop partnership communications, sponsor recognition assets, and co-branded toolkits.
• Develop and maintain an organizational content library, including toolkits, fact sheets, impact reports, annual reports, resource guides, and promotional collateral for chapters and community partners.
• Support the development of donor and funder communications, including impact stories, grant narrative support, stewardship materials, and recognition.
• Oversee production of organizational newsletters, publications, and stakeholder digests - both internal (staff, board) and external (partners, funders, community).
• Collaborate with the Director of Field Engagement and Director of Finance to ensure communications activities meet grant goals and are accurately reported.
• Maintain precise records of communications outputs, platform metrics, and grant-specific activities;
• Serve as an active, strategic member of the SADD Senior Leadership Team; contributing a communications and brand perspective to organizational planning, development, and decision-making.
• Support organizational culture and internal engagement through thoughtful, mission-aligned internal communications.
• Perform other duties as determined by the Executive Director.

DUTIES & REPORTING STRUCTURE

The Director of Media, Communications & Marketing holds primary Accountability and Responsibility (A, R) for the following functional areas as defined in the SADD organizational RACI framework. This role reports directly to the Executive Director and serves as the lead communications authority across all departments, working in close coordination with the Director of Field Engagement on field-level content, the Director of Finance on grant-aligned reporting, and external partners on co-branded initiatives.

Functional Area

Dir. of Media, Comm. & Mktg.

Organizational Communications Strategy

A, R

Executive & Internal Communications

A, R

Brand Strategy, Standards & Visual Identity

A, R

External Brand Alignment & Review

A, R

Media Relations & Press (national/local)

A, R

Spokesperson Preparation & Media Coaching

A, R

Crisis Communications Management

A, R

Public-Facing & Stakeholder Materials

A, R

Social Media Strategy & Platform Mgmt.

A, R

State/Field Social Media Content & Compliance

A, R

Digital Analytics & Performance Reporting

A, R

Website Oversight & Content Strategy

A, R

National Campaign Design & Execution

A, R

Co-Marketing & Sponsor/Partner Comms.

A, R

Storytelling Assets & Impact Content

A, R

Donor & Funder Narrative Support

A, R

Newsletters, Publications & Digests

A, R

Grant Communications Compliance

A, R

Vendor & Agency Management (Comms.)

A, R

Organizational Strategy & Planning

C, I

Fundraising Strategy Support

C, I

RACI Key: R = Responsible (does the work) | A = Accountable (owns the outcome) | C = Consulted (provides input) | I = Informed (kept in the loop)

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE

Required

• Minimum 7+ years of progressive experience in communications, marketing, media relations, or public affairs - with at least 3 years in a senior or director-level role.
• Demonstrated success leading organizational communications strategy for a nonprofit, government agency, advocacy organization, or similarly mission-driven institution.
• Proven track record building and managing media relationships resulting in measurable earned media outcomes at local, regional, and national levels.
• Deep expertise in multi-channel digital marketing, including social media strategy, content development, SEO/SEM, email marketing, and analytics platforms.
• Advanced written communication skills - with a portfolio demonstrating excellence across press releases, executive messaging, grant narrative content, campaigns, and storytelling.
• Proficiency with content management systems (e.g., Wix), social media scheduling and analytics tools, CRM platforms (e.g., DonorDock), email marketing platforms, and design tools (e.g., Adobe Creative Suite, Canva).
• Strong data literacy with ability to define KPIs, interpret analytics, and translate performance data into strategic recommendations.
• Exceptional organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple high-priority workstreams simultaneously, including grant-driven deadlines.
• Willingness and ability to travel for national events, media opportunities, and field engagement.

Preferred

• Background in youth-serving nonprofits, public health, prevention, mobility safety, or advocacy organizations.
• Experience developing communications strategies for grant-funded programs, including compliance documentation and grantor reporting.
• Familiarity with federal and state grant communication requirements (e.g., Highway Safety Office grants).
• Experience with legislative/advocacy communications and government affairs messaging.

Key competencies include:

• Teamwork: SADD requires highly organized, team-oriented, creative leaders who enjoy working with their peers and are prepared to collaborate across the organization to develop communications plans to meet the needs of our various grants and projects.

• Professionalism: This position will work on various projects related to different departments within the organization, therefore, it is critical for this position to be flexible and open to collaboration with internal staff, student leaders, external partners, and funders.

• Initiative: This position is required to keep very clear and accurate records of work completed for each grant assigned, as well as track grant goals related to communications efforts, requiring thinking outside the box, being creative, and developing new and updated graphics, copy, and content to align with ongoing and new projects.

• Flexibility: This role will support those working on projects throughout the United States (and abroad), as well as students and external partners. This will require attention to detail and a malleable approach to a schedule.

• Trend Monitoring: This role will ensure SADD remains relevant and engaging in current trends. It will be critical for this person to design and develop content that maximizes engagement with the youth audience across all platforms while also ensuring continued engagement with partners, adults, and communities at large.

• Evaluation: Our work relies on accurate data collection & management. This position will oversee achieving set goals, monitoring and recording metrics and data, completing necessary reports, and ensuring that SADD staff, chapters, and partners remain engaged.

No phone calls are accepted. Send resume & cover letter (including salary requirements) along with online application. Please also include any portfolios or examples of graphic design work as it applies.

Equal Opportunity Employer:

As a company dedicated to Equal Opportunity Employment, we uphold a commitment to providing fair and equitable employment opportunities to all individuals seeking employment with us. Our employment decisions are solely influenced by job-related factors, devoid of discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, marital status, age, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability status as a qualified individual, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic.