ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS SPECIALIST
JOHN D. AND CATHERINE T. MACARTHUR FOUNDATION

About the Foundation

The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation is a private, independent grantmaking institution helping to build a more just and sustainable world. Through the support it provides, the Foundation fosters the development of knowledge, nurtures individual creativity, strengthens institutions, helps improve public policy, and provides information to the public, primarily through support for public interest media.

With assets over $6.4 billion and grants and program-related investments totaling approximately $260 million annually, MacArthur is one of the nation’s largest private philanthropic foundations. The Foundation makes grants through four programs.

• The Program on Global Security and Sustainability focuses on international issues, including human rights and international justice, peace and security, conservation and sustainable development, higher education, migration, and population and reproductive health. MacArthur grantees work in 60 countries, and the Foundation has offices in India, Mexico, Nigeria, and Russia.

• The Program on Human and Community Development addresses issues in the United States that include community and economic development; housing, with a focus on the preservation of affordable rental housing; juvenile justice reform; and education, with an emerging interest in how digital media impact learning.

• The General Program supports public interest media, including public radio, television, and the production of independent documentary film. Grants are also made to arts and cultural institutions in the Chicago area and for special initiatives, currently including intellectual property rights in a digital environment.

• The MacArthur Fellows Program awards five-year, unrestricted fellowships to individuals across all ages and fields who show exceptional merit and promise of continued creative work.

To learn more about the Foundation please visit www.macfound.org, where you can subscribe to e-news updates.

About the Public Affairs Department

The mission of the Public Affairs Department is to communicate the Foundation’s key messages – and the work of the Foundation and its grantees – to the press, public and private sectors leaders, other key constituencies, staff, and the public. We seek to deepen the Foundation’s public identity, build its fields of work, and facilitate program goals.

To achieve these goals, the Department produces a wide range of written materials and publications, including opinion-editorials, press releases and fact sheets, the annual report, quarterly print newsletters, monthly electronic newsletters, and updates for the Board and staff. Public Affairs staff also maintain the Foundation’s website, create and plan public events, and conduct outreach to media and influentials.

The new Communications Officer will join the current four-member team, which consists of a Director, two Communications Officers, and Communications Assistant. The Foundation is expanding its use of electronic communications to help further advance the work and impact of MacArthur and its grantees.

About the Position

The Foundation’s website – www.macfound.org – receives approximately 500,000 unique visitors per year and is one of the most visited sites in the philanthropy community. Several microsites offer additional content: www.digitallearning.macfound.org was created to highlight the Foundation’s digital media and learning initiative; www.annualreport.macfound.org provides an online companion to our annual report; and www.spotlight.macfound.org is a MacArthur blog on digital media and learning.

Our electronic communications efforts have been growing rapidly. We communicate electronically and regularly with 30,000 people through a monthly electronic newsletter and occasional email updates on specific fields of work.

We are always looking to do more – and to do better. We seek a collaborative colleague with an abundance of creativity, energy, humor, intelligence, and common sense to help us further develop our electronic communications efforts.

The successful candidate filling this new position, part of the Foundation’s integrated public affairs team, will –

• Help craft and implement the Foundation’s electronic communication strategy;

• Be responsible for keeping MacArthur’s website and blog content fresh, up-to-date, and accurate;

• Create new content and creative new features for the Foundation’s site, reflecting our overall Public Affairs and program goals;

• Help produce interactive, online companion pieces to our print publications;

• Produce new multi-media content, including video and audio;

• Assist in further development and expansion of the Foundation’s contacts database with the twin goals of expanding our list of contacts and improving what we know about contacts to enable better targeting of communications.

• Work with grantees and staff to provide strategic advice on electronic communications efforts.


The successful candidate will possess –

• At least three years of professional experience managing a website;

• Intermediate-level skill working with content management systems;

• Intermediate-level fluency in HTML and Photoshop;

• At least basic web design capabilities;

• Experience with InDesign (or similar software) a plus;

• Experience integrating collaborative tools, where appropriate, into web design;

• Basic editing skills for video and audio files and ability to integrate in overall web design (preferred);

• Experience working with large databases a plus;

• Familiarity with and desire to learn more about online communications strategies, tools, and trends;

• A strong interest in the work of the Foundation and the non-profit community.

To apply, candidates should visit www.macfound.org and click on “About the Foundation” and then “Career Opportunities” or send a resume to

The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
Office of Human Resources
140 S. Dearborn Street, 12th floor
Chicago, IL 60603

The John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation is an equal opportunity employer and benefits from the talents of a diverse staff.