With Who: Athletics Media Relations, at Montana State University Billings
Location: Billings, MT
Type of Employment: Full-Time
Position Description: The Director of Athletics Communications is responsible for promoting and celebrating the excellence of Montana State University Billings athletics program and the accomplishments of the university’s diverse and talented student athletes, coaches, and staff.
Duties and Responsibilities: The Director of Athletics Communications is responsible for promoting and celebrating the excellence of Montana State University Billings athletics program and the accomplishments of the university’s diverse and talented student athletes, coaches, and staff. Supervising a full-time Assistant Director of Athletics Communications, interns and/or student workers, the Director manages the compilation and distribution of information and news about MSUB Athletics and serves as a liaison between the media and the public for MSUB student athletes and Athletics personnel.
The Director of Athletics Communications works closely with the university’s Director of Marketing and Communications and represents and advocates for Athletics in discussions of overall institutional communications strategy. In addition, the Director cultivates and maintains strong collaborative relationships across campus. Some travel is required, as is a valid driver’s license.
- Oversees sports statistical reporting to meet NCAA and Great Northwest Athletic Conference requirements, including organization and coordination of press box and media area activities at athletics events.
- Writes, designs, prints and/or posts previews, home game programs, post-game recaps, graphics, video and photography for the Athletics website and social media channels, which include Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube pages, as well as within the conference and NCAA.
- Pitches and writes press releases and articles for the local, regional, and national media.
- Manages the msubsports.com website and the relationship with website vendor Sidearm Sports.
- Informs the university, and local and national media of upcoming athletics events.
- Pitches feature story ideas to local and national media.
- Manages post-game interviews with coaches and student-athletes when applicable.
- E-mails game recaps, box scores, press releases and feature stories to all local media immediately following contests.
- Oversees the Yello-wjacket Hall of Fame & Distinction, collecting nominations and completing research on nominees, and serving as chair of the Hall of Fame & Distinction Committee.
- Oversees the planning and execution of media days, press conferences, annual end of the year student-athlete awards ceremony, etc.
- Maintains photographs, statistics, rosters, schedules, results, historical records, archives and bios for each member ofMSUB’s varsity sports teams plus co-ed cheer.
- Helps run sport webcasts and tracks live statistics.
- Contacts student-athletes’ local newspapers when outstanding athletic/academic achievements occur.
- Responds to general media queries and requests as well as coordinate coach/student athlete interviews.
- Nominates student-athletes for conference, regional and national awards.
- During the summer, required to, among other tasks, archive the previous year’s seasons and record books, and prepare each team’s web pages for the upcoming year, along with any redesigns of the athletics website.
- Oversees and maintains a system of files for each sport including sports news, clippings, photos, and Athletic Department historical and biographical libraries.
- Engages the university community by participating in campus activities to build relationship to impact the athletic program in a positive manner. Examples include regular involvement with the university’s marketing & communications department and the MSUB Center for Engagement.
- Travels with MSU Billings athletic teams, when appropriate, and handles related media relations on the road.
- Works in conjunction with the Athletics Accountant to manage the athletics communications budget and allocate resources in the most effective manner.
- Performs other duties and responsibilities as assigned by the Director of Intercollegiate Athletics.
Required Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree
- 2 years of experience in the athletics communications field
- Excellent writing, basic photography, and video editing skillsFamiliarity with Microsoft Word, Adobe InDesign, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Premiere, StatCrew, PrestoStats, Genius Sports NCAA Live Stats and Golfstat
- Excellent collaboration and relationship building skills
- Ability to work under the pressure of very tight deadlines
- Ability to work a flexible schedule including frequent evenings and weekends to support events
- Experience with social media, media relations, basic photography, and video editing
- Superior attention-to-detail, proofreading and editing skills
- Leadership and supervisory experience, including demonstrated staff management skills
- Commitment to working with a diverse and inclusive community
Preferred Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in journalism, communications, marketing, public relations, advertising, or closely related field.
- Master’s Degree in related field.
Application Deadline: Applications close on June 17, 2020.
Apply (or request more information): Apply today, or request more information, on the MSU Billings Job Portal.
