Job detail for Communications Associate, Cancer Center

Founded in 1824, the GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences (SMHS) is the 11th oldest medical school in the country and the first in the nation’s capital. Since its establishment, the school has been at the forefront of medical education and has grown to include highly-ranked programs in the health and biomedical sciences. With dozens of top-tier residency programs, SMHS is a competitive and esteemed destination for medical school graduates across the country. Find out more here: http://smhs.gwu.edu/ This role will support the Principal Investigator to communicate and promote the GW Technical Assistance Program (TAP) initiatives, programs, workshops, trainings, and evaluation reports, in order to increase the capacity of comprehensive cancer control programs nationwide. Typically, this role will participate in the development and execution of strategic communication and outreach campaigns to assist states, tribes, and territories with health promotion, cancer prevention, and other cancer control priorities. The Communications Associate will ensure communication aligns with GW’s requirements for branding and image by drafting and editing unit communications for review, updating and writing of the website, newsletters, reports, social media across numerous platforms, and other materials. Additionally, this role will enhance improvements and maintenance of an evidence-based comprehensive cancer control communications training for practitioners, working with the project director, Principal Investigator, and education and training manager. This role will collaborate and coordinate with the university on communications activities and media relations to ensure a consistent and efficient approach to events, initiatives, outreach, and communication.

The primary duties of this role are to update and maintain the GW TAP Cancer Awareness Toolkits through scientific literature review, desktop research for credible sources of guidelines (American Cancer Society, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, US Preventive Services Task Force, American Society of Clinical Oncology, National Comprehensive Cancer Network) using public health communication best practices, create content and optimize open rate and click throughs for monthly newsletters, develop a strategic social media plan across numerous platforms and post social media content to assist cancer control grantees with health promotion, cancer screening, and early detection messaging, and using WordPress, update the GW TAP website.

Position Duties:

• Preparing and optimizing the design, readability, and utility of two monthly newsletters for cancer control and clinical stakeholders focused on current initiatives, resources, and updates in cancer prevention, screening survivorship, and patient navigation.
• Optimize Cancer Awareness Toolkits by reviewing evidence from the last three years in the scientific literature, guidelines, reports, and collaborating with relevant national organizations; create graphics and images and use the WordPress application to revise content; track impressions and evaluate the impact of public health campaigns.
• Identify and implement online and social media strategies by designing and producing social media content and scheduling consistent social media messaging across numerous platforms (Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Bluesky) to increase dissemination of public service messaging and technical assistance resources nationally. Identify innovative approaches to increase impact of public health messaging and identify potential new channels to optimally reach the public.
• Draft communication templates, presentations, press releases and other materials as models for state comprehensive cancer control programs to adapt.
• Manage and update the TAP website using WordPress including running website analytics and creating strategies for improved accuracy and utility.
• Edit and review content, including guides, toolkits and online training content.
• Perform other related duties as assigned. The omission of specific duties does not preclude the supervisor from assigning duties that are logically related to the position.

GW TAP is funded through a cooperative agreement from the CDC to design and implement training and technical assistance to comprehensive cancer control programs and partners. GW TAP works closely with the National Networks, other cancer control technical assistance providers that are funded by CDC.