Director of Narrative Strategy & Media Engagement

## About the Charitable Independence Initiative

The Charitable Independence Initiative (CII) is a national, nonpartisan effort dedicated to strengthening the independence, visibility, and long‑term public standing of the nonprofit sector.

Through our Frontline Voices pilot, CII partners with local nonprofit organizations to help them build stronger relationships with public officials, communicate their impact more effectively, and position themselves as trusted community experts and indispensable civic partners.

Our work helps nonprofit leaders tell compelling stories that resonate with policymakers, media outlets, and local communities—ensuring charitable organizations are not only heard, but recognized as credible, trusted voices that public officials and their staff want “on speed dial.”

The pilot is currently active across multiple states and communities and focuses on strengthening nonprofit communications capacity, civic engagement, media visibility, and cross‑sector trust.

## Position Summary

The Charitable Independence Initiative is seeking an exceptional storyteller, communications strategist, and relationship‑builder to serve as Director of Narrative Strategy & Media Engagement.

This role is designed for someone who combines strong narrative instincts with emotional intelligence, strategic thinking, excellent judgment, and the ability to work independently across multiple communities and stakeholders.

The successful candidate will help nonprofit leaders strengthen how they communicate their impact, engage effectively with public officials and staff, and build meaningful relationships with local media and trusted community voices.

This position requires someone who can both coach others and execute independently—a person equally comfortable facilitating trainings, developing messaging strategies, conducting media outreach, and identifying stories that elevate the value, influence, and civic importance of the charitable sector.

The Director will also research and engage local media ecosystems across pilot communities, identify opportunities for earned media coverage, and help nonprofit organizations become trusted civic resources within their communities.

This is a highly collaborative and self‑directed role that requires strong initiative, excellent communication skills, and the ability to manage multiple priorities.

The position reports jointly to the CEO and the Managing Director of Programs & Public Affairs.

## Key Responsibilities

### Narrative Strategy, Storytelling & Messaging

– **Develop compelling stories** — Help nonprofit partners create stories, messaging, and strategic narratives that clearly communicate their community impact and civic value.
– **Support expert positioning** — Assist organizations in positioning themselves as trusted local experts and valued civic partners.
– **Coach leaders** — Guide nonprofit leaders on communicating effectively with public officials, media outlets, and community audiences.
– **Identify key stories** — Elevate stories that strengthen public understanding of the nonprofit sector’s role, value, and influence.
– **Refine messaging** — Support partners in preparing messaging for meetings, public engagement, media interviews, and relationship‑building.

### Media Engagement & Relationship Building

– **Map media ecosystems** — Build on research of local media environments across pilot communities, including reporters, editors, outlets, digital platforms, and trusted community voices.
– **Conduct media outreach** — Help nonprofit partners identify opportunities for earned media coverage and public visibility.
– **Prepare for media interactions** — Support nonprofits in interviews, media interactions, public events, and strategic communications opportunities.
– **Identify communications trends** — Track trends that strengthen nonprofit visibility and credibility. Maintain and improve the CII website with stories and examples from trainings.

### Training & Capacity Building

– **Refine training curriculum** — Enhance and scale CII’s Frontline Voices curriculum, including workshops, presentations, guides, templates, and coaching materials.
– **Deliver trainings** — Lead engaging trainings, peer‑learning sessions, and one‑on‑one coaching for nonprofit leaders with varying experience levels.
– **Facilitate skill‑building** — Support storytelling, media engagement, strategic communications, and relationship‑building with public officials and community stakeholders.

### Strategic Research & Field Intelligence

– **Conduct communications research** — Study local communications environments, media dynamics, and civic engagement landscapes.
– **Develop background materials** — Produce media lists, messaging recommendations, and strategic communications guidance.
– **Track insights** — Document lessons learned, opportunities, and field insights to strengthen the Frontline Voices model.

### Collaboration, Evaluation & Project Support

– **Support training logistics** — Assist with all logistics needs for training sessions, including on‑the‑ground support.
– **Collaborate with leadership** — Work closely with CII leadership, program staff, and evaluation partners.
– **Contribute to planning** — Support project planning, learning documentation, funder reporting, and replication materials.
– **Ensure program alignment** — Maintain alignment with program goals, timelines, and funder expectations.
– **Manage team communications** — Oversee media outreach, articles, and communications prepared by the CII team.

Some responsibilities may be shared across team members.

## Qualifications

### Required

– Exceptional storytelling, writing, editing, and strategic communications skills.
– Demonstrated experience helping organizations develop compelling narratives and public‑facing messaging.
– Experience in nonprofit communications, public affairs, journalism, civic engagement, advocacy communications, media relations, or related fields.
– Strong emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build trust across diverse stakeholders and communities.
– Proven ability to work independently, take initiative, manage multiple priorities, and drive projects forward with limited oversight.
– Experience conducting outreach and relationship‑building with media, community leaders, public officials, or other external stakeholders.
– Excellent facilitation, coaching, and presentation skills.
– Strong organizational and project management abilities.
– Collaborative mindset and ability to work effectively within a small, mission‑driven team.

### Preferred

– Experience working with nonprofit organizations or mission‑driven initiatives.
– Familiarity with local or regional media ecosystems.
– Experience engaging with public officials, government staff, or civic institutions.
– Experience working in politically diverse communities, rural communities, or conservative‑leaning regions.
– Familiarity with communications tools such as Muck Rack, Canva, Meta Business Suite, or similar platforms.

## Travel Requirements

Spurts of concentrated travel to pilot communities and partner sites across participating states.

## Consulting Fee & Term

$9,580 per month for a full‑time consulting engagement.

This position is funded through January 2027, with the possibility of extension contingent upon additional funding.

This is an independent contractor position. The consultant is responsible for managing their own taxes, insurance, and benefits.

Issue One serves as the fiscal sponsor for the Charitable Independence Initiative, a 501(c)(3) organization.

## Application Process

To apply, please submit the following materials to
[email protected]:

– **Resume**
– **Writing sample** — One writing sample, earned media example, or communications product demonstrating storytelling and strategic communications abilities
– **Short response** — A brief response (maximum 300 words) to the following prompt:

> Describe a story, narrative, or communications effort you helped shape that changed how an audience understood an issue, organization, or community. What made it effective?

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.