Student Experience Director

At NEWSWELL, we help newsrooms become nonprofit and for-community. We provide

strategic guidance, innovative solutions and wrap-around operations so local journalists can focus on local news, and newsrooms can best serve their communities. We partner with Arizona State University, the nation’s most innovative nine years in a row, to offer game-changing ideas, tools, and research. 

We transform local news to help communities and democracy thrive.

NEWSWELL seeks applications for the new part-time role of Student Experience Director. Our local editors are trusted experts in their communities. This director helps local editors and the combined organization make sure we are providing valuable learning experiences to students while working collaboratively with their colleges and centers.

This director would work with local editors to hire and mentor for our interns and student workers. In addition, s/he would work with faculty and administration on learning collaborations, content sharing, and partnerships across the university and in the communities we serve.

The ideal candidate brings deep knowledge of and passion for advancing local journalism, experience mentoring and teaching student journalists, and a belief that local journalism can be a positive force in our communities and democracy. As we create a new nonprofit model for transforming local news, we have identified four key drivers of our success:

As we create a new model for transforming local news, we have identified four key drivers of our success:

• Listening: Our organizational culture of listening enables NEWSWELL to more deeply understand barriers to trust and consumption of local news and help newsrooms build stronger relationships within their communities.
• Learning: Our relentless drive to strengthen our expertise and knowledge in all areas of community concerns, local journalism and audience needs enables our newsrooms to create engaging content and products in a complex and evolving field.
• Empowerment: Our commitment to innovation and inclusion maximizes the talent and potential of all team members while building success and a sense of belonging.
• Passion: Our unwavering belief in the promise of local journalism and its ability to help communities and democracy thrive fuels our desire to reinvent its future.

What you'll do:

• Uphold the highest standards of journalistic integrity and credibility in our news reporting.
• Mentor our student interns and workers.
• Work with students, faculty and administrators across the university to develop student experiences.
• Be the point of contact for outside journalism fellowships and opportunities.
• Be a member of the larger NEWSWELL leadership team, offering insights and ideas as we build our innovative nonprofit.
• Travel as needed to local properties or external partners/collaborators.
• Create an inclusive work environment that values diversity, fosters belonging, empowers others and nourishes a culture that pushes for and celebrates wins.

What you'll need:

• Exceptional news judgment and ethics.
• Proven track record in initiating, shepherding, editing and publishing impactful local journalism.
• Demonstrated organizational skills such as project management, strategic planning and evaluating progress.
• Proven track record of working with beginning journalists and providing impactful guidance and experiences.
• Exceptional interpersonal skills and the ability to interact effectively with local editors, community members, NEWSWELL leadership, industry and university partners, and/or funders and supporters in a wide range of
• Strong leadership skills: ability to organize, motivate, and lead a team to achieve desired results.

Relevant qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree and ten (10) plus years of successful editing, teaching and mentoring beginning journalists.

Benefits:  

• Comprehensive benefits package, including medical, dental, and vision insurance 

• 401(k) plan with matching employer contribution 

• 22 days of vacation time 

• 11 holidays, including your birthday 

• Parental leave 

• Significant tuition reductions 

• Professional d