Race & Equity Communications Specialist

Position Information

Arlington County's Manager's Office is seeking a Race & Equity Communications Specialist to support the County's continuing efforts to advance racial equity, diversity, and inclusion internally and across the community. This position will assist with developing and implementing communication and engagement strategies that bring greater awareness of the Office of Realizing Arlington's Commitment to Equity (R.A.C.E.)'s policies, programs, projects, and overall priorities to the workforce and the community.

Specific duties include:

• Designing, implementing, and assessing communications plans and public engagement strategies for R.A.C.E;

• Establishing and maintaining relationships with community organizations and community leaders with a focus on those who support Black, Indigenous, people of color (BIPOC) and immigrant communities;

• Collecting, disaggregating, and analyzing qualitative and quantitative feedback from engagement opportunities and presenting the data in accessible formats;

• Updating and maintaining the R.A.C.E. webpage and all associated landing pages;

• Developing reports (annual and interim), templates, infographics, tools/resources, and other accessible materials on R.A.C.E. for the workforce and community;

• Facilitating community meetings, pop-ups, and events (in person and virtual); and

• Assisting the Race and Equity Programs Manager with various programs and projects.

The ideal candidate will have the following:

• Excellent communications skills to build relationships with community partners and leaders;

• Writing skills to draft written communications or narrative reports;

• Interpersonal skills to resolve complaints, coordinate with other departments, and speak in public; and

• Problem solving skills to gather relevant information to solve vaguely defined practical problems.

Selection Criteria

Minimum:

• Bachelor's degree in communications, public policy, public administration, education, journalism, public relations, or a related field; and

• Some experience in communications, journalism, public relations, or public information.

Substitution: Additional qualifying experience can be substituted for the educational requirement. A Master's degree may be substituted for some of the experience requirement.

Desirables: Preference will be given to applicants with experience in one or more of the following:

• Organizing events and information;

• Using and managing information through social media;

• Developing or creating web content; and/or

• Using computer programs and applications to complete work.

Additional Information

Work Hours: This is a 40 hour a week position with varying hours depending on meetings and engagements. Flexibility will be required to accommodate weekends and evening events, or meetings as needed.

The official title for this position is Communications Specialist I (NB).

Your responses to the supplemental questionnaire are considered part of the selection process and are required for this position. Please do not give "see resume" as a response to the questions. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

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Applicants who have questions or need assistance with the application may telephone (703) 228-3500 or visit the Human Resources Department. Our staff will be happy to work with you to enter your application into the system. Public access computers are available at all County Libraries, and in the Human Resources Department.

The examination process for this position may include: (1) training and experience evaluation; (2) written and oral examination; (3) personal interview; (4) performance test/work sample; and/or (5) physical examination.

Applicants with disabilities may request reasonable accommodation during the application or selection process. Please call the ADA Coordinator at 703-228-3559 (voice) or email pers@arlingtonva.us.

Eligibility for Arlington County Government employee benefits depends on your position type (permanent or temporary) and your status (full-time or part-time).

More detailed information on benefits and conditions of employment is available on the Arlington County Human Resources Department website: www.arlingtonva.us/pers.

Permanent, Full-Time Appointments

All jobs are permanent, full-time appointments unless otherwise stated in the announcement. The following benefits are available:

Paid Leave: Vacation leave is earned at the rate of five hours biweekly. Leave accrual increases gradually until eight hours of leave are earned biweekly for twelve or more years of service. Sick leave is earned at the rate of four hours biweekly. Paid parental and family leave benefits are also offered. Leave is pro-rated for part-time employees.

Holidays: There are eleven paid fixed holidays each year, as well as two floating holidays. Initial allotment of floating holidays may vary based on when you are hired.

Health and Dental Insurance: Four group health insurance plans are offered - a health maintenance organization, two plans with in-network only coverage, and a high-deductible plan with in and out-of-network coveerage, along with a Health Savings Account (HSA). Group dental insurance is also offered, with two options for coverage. The County pays a significant portion of the premium for these plans for employees and their dependents. The County also contributes to the HSA.

Life Insurance: Basic life insurance is provided at no cost to employees. The benefit is one times annual salary. Additional life insurance may be purchased for yourself, spouse, and/or children.

Retirement: The County retirement program is made up of three parts: a defined benefit (pension) plan, a defined contribution plan (401(a)), and a deferred compensation plan (457). The defined benefit plan provides a monthly retirement benefit based on your final average salary and years of service with the County. You contribute a portion of your salary on a pre-tax basis to this plan. General employees contribute 4% of pay; uniformed public safety employees contribute 7.5% of pay. The County also contributes to this plan. Employees become vested in the plan at five years of service.

For general employees, the County also contributes 4.2% of pay to a defined contribution plan (401(a)). The 457 deferred compensation plan allows you to save for retirement on either a pre-tax (457b) or post-tax (457 Roth) basis up to the IRS annual limit. New employees are automatically enrolled with a pre-tax contribution equal to 2% of your pay. A variety of investment options are available for the 401(a) and 457 plans.

Other Benefits: The County also offers health care, dependent care, and parking flexible spending accounts; adoption assistance, tuition reimbursement; transit and walk/bike to work subsidies; a college savings plan; wellness programs; training opportunities; and a variety of other benefits.

Permanent, Part-Time Appointments:

Part-time employees who work ten or more hours per week receive paid leave and benefits in proportion to the number of hours worked per week.

Limited Term Appointments:

Benefits are the same as permanent appointments except that the employees do not achieve permanent status.

Temporary Regular Appointments:

Temporary regular employees who work 30 hours or more per week are eligible for health, dental, and basic life insurance as described above. They are also eligible for vacation, sick leave, and paid holidays.

Temporary Seasonal and Occasional Appointments:

Temporary employees who work on a seasonal basis or variable hours receive sick leave, but do not normally receive other paid leave or benefits. Exceptions are noted in individual announcements.

01

What is your highest level of education?

• High school diploma or equivalent

• Some college

• Bachelor's degree in communications, public policy, public administration, education, journalism, public relations, or a related field

• Master's degree in communications, public policy, public administration, education, journalism, public relations, or a related field

02

How many years of professional experience supporting efforts to advance racial equity, diversity, and inclusion do you have?

• None

• Less than 1 year

• 1 but less than 2 years

• 2 years or more

03

How many years of experience designing, implementing, and assessing race and equity communications plans and public engagement strategies do you have?

• None

• Less than 1 year

• 1 but less than 2 years

• 2 years or more

Required Question

Agency Arlington County

Address 2100 Clarendon Blvd, Suite 511

Arlington, Virginia, 22201

Phone 703-228-3500

Website https://careers.arlingtonva.us/