The National Black Women’s Justice Institute (NBWJI) researches the criminalization of Black women, girls, & gender-expansive people and elevates innovative, community-led solutions to address it. We engage in rigorous research and capacity building in order to transform the criminal legal system and promote policy change that centers and uplifts the voices and experiences of system-impacted Black women, girls, & gender-expansive people. We aim to dismantle the racist, patriarchal, and punitive paradigm that drives the U.S. criminal-legal system and build, in its place, pathways to opportunity and healing. At NBWJI, we envision a society where healing—not punishment—is upheld as justice.

This is an exciting time at the National Black Women’s Justice Institute. We are small, but our work portfolio is growing and so is our team. This means there are opportunities for growth and to help shape NBWJI as we become the premier home for comprehensive research, analysis, & data about the factors that lead to the criminalization, arrest, and incarceration of Black women & girls and the solutions and opportunities for healing.

Under the supervision of the Senior Director of Communications, the Digital Communications Associate will take a lead role in strengthening NBWJI’s voice and extending NBWJI’s reach through social media and email campaigns. The Digital Communications Associate will be a content creator, starting from conceptualization to execution. You will use analytics to inform your decision-making.

Situated within the Communications Department, the Digital Communications Associate will be integral to achieving the department’s goals, which include working to shift the narrative and build awareness of the gendered- and racialized-pathways that contribute to the criminalization of Black women & girls. We aim to inspire people to take action by sharing stories and research & solutions that center the voices and experiences of Black women, girls, & gender-expansive people who have been impacted by the criminal and juvenile legal systems.

We approach all of our work with a Black feminist intersectional lens, and we are guided by our organizational values of collaboration, growth, rigor & innovation, and accountability. We value a range of experiences in people’s educational backgrounds and encourage people who have been directly impacted by the criminal or juvenile legal systems to apply.

What you’ll be doing

• Work closely with the Sr. Director of Communications to conceptualize, plan, and execute email and social media campaigns from start to finish, including setting goals, developing a timeline, creating content, and measuring impact.

• Create content (copy, graphics, and video) for social media, email campaigns, and occasionally NBWJI’s website that align with NBWJI’s style and voice and that help advance NBWJI’s communications strategy.

• Propose content ideas that fit NBWJI’s voice and advance NBWJI’s communications strategy.

• Stay informed about current news events, trends, and developments in the criminal justice and juvenile justice fields by tracking news through traditional and social media. Identify opportunities for NBWJI to contribute to the conversation and leverage digital trends to strengthen NBWJI’s voice, expand our reach, and lift up the voices and experiences of directly-impacted Black women and girls.

• Collaborate with NBWJI staff at all levels as necessary to solicit project information and to create content.

• Ensure editorial integrity, consistency, and accuracy of all content.

• Monitor social media channels, respond to comments, messages, and inquiries.

• Monitor and report on analytics including email marketing stats and social following/engagement. Use social media analytics tools to track and analyze key performance metrics and make recommendations based on the data.

• Update content on NBWJI’s website.

• Maintain and update NBWJI’s email list.

• Make recommendations on workflows.

Knowledge, skills, & abilities you'll bring

• At least 2-5 years of relevant work experience.

• Must be able to work both independently and as part of a team. Must be able to work with people at all levels.

• Critical thinker. You must be able to take a step back to understand the big picture and understand where your work fits within NBWJI’s portfolio and how it furthers NBWJI’s communications strategy.

• Creative thinking and problem-solving abilities. You should be able to analyze a task, research potential solutions or approaches, present the task and potential solutions, and make recommendations.

• Be proactive. Identify and recommend opportunities to advance NBWJI’s communications strategy.

• Willingness to experiment and try new approaches and to identify and learn new tools.

• A deep knowledge of and passion for social media. You know what people are talking about, where they’re talking about it, and how NBWJI can add our voice to the conversation.

• Familiarity with major social media platforms and trends, as well as best practices for content creation, community management, and audience engagement.

• Exceptional digital communications skills. You have the ability to distill complex topics into accessible, concise, and persuasive copy. You also have the ability to use tools to design compelling visuals.

• Experience in building and sending email campaigns to constituents.

• Exceptional organizational skills and attention to detail

• Great project management skills, including time management, goal-setting, multitasking, and prioritization

• Experience using content management systems.

• Passion for social justice and a commitment to NBWJI’s mission.

Preferred

• Knowledge of issues affecting criminalized Black women, girls, and gender expansive people

• Experience in fields related to the criminal or juvenile legal systems

• Commitment to transforming the criminal legal system

• Experience with policy or advocacy campaigns

• Experience in digital content creation or blogging

• Understanding of the concept of intersectionality

• Experience managing and updating website content

• Experience working with some or all of the following:

• Social media management tools (e.g., Later, Sprout Social)

• Email campaign management tools (e.g., MailChimp)

• Project management tools (e.g., ClickUp, Asana)

• Design tools (e.g., Canva, Adobe Creative Suite tools)

• Video editing tools (e.g. CapCut, Veed)

• Website management tools (e.g., Wix, Wordpress)

• eCRMs (e.g., ActionKit, Springboard, EveryAction, Luminate Online, Salesforce, etc.)

Technical knowledge helpful for this role

• ClickUp or other project management tools

• Wix or other content management systems

• Later or other social media management tools

• Google Workspace

• Graphic design tools (Adobe Creative Suite, Canva, CapCut)

• Zoom

Salary and benefits

The position offers a salary in the range of $60,000 to $70,000, commensurate with experience. Employees also receive a benefits package including health coverage, short and long-term disability, and paid time off. This position is full-time (FSLA: Exempt).

Equal Opportunity Employment

The National Black Women’s Justice Institute provides equal employment opportunities to all applicants without regard to race/ethnicity, color, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, religion, national origin, age, criminal history, or disability. NBWJI encourages people who have been directly impacted by the criminal legal system to apply.

To Apply

Submit the following to information@nbwji.org and include the job title in the subject line:

• Your resumé. (Submit as a PDF)

• 2-3 relevant work samples. (Submit PDFs or links to the work)

• A short statement telling us why you are interested in the National Black Women’s Justice Institute, what makes you a great fit for this position, and what you would bring to the team. (500 words or less; submit as PDF)