COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER JOB OPENING
December 2024 Update: This position has been filled.
The American Society of Overseas Research (ASOR) seeks candidates for a full-time Communications Manager to oversee outreach efforts in the areas of social media and communications with ASOR members and the public. This person will also manage the Friends of ASOR (FOA) outreach program. This in-person position is located at The James F. Strange Center—headquarters of ASOR, 209 Commerce St., in historic Old Town Alexandria, VA.
Founded in 1900, the ASOR is a 501(c)(3) non-profit whose mission is to initiate, encourage, and support research into, and public understanding of, the history and cultures of the Near East and wider Mediterranean world, from the earliest times.
The Communications Manager is responsible for ASOR’s marketing and communications strategies. They directly oversee all FOA programming and manage ASOR social media strategies to engage both the public and ASOR members and friends. This position reports to ASOR’s Assistant Director, Marta Ostovich.
Primary Responsibilities:
Communications
- Under the direction of the Assistant Director, develop and implement a media relations and outreach program. Provide expertise and oversight for ASOR’s social media.
- Under the direction of the Assistant Director, develop and implement ASOR’s social media strategies using key platforms that connect with our membership and build relationships with those interested in archaeology and history to expand our membership.
- Monitor and engage with followers on ASOR’s social media accounts, and analyze social media metrics to improve engagement with the public.
- Work with ASOR staff members to maintain high-quality customer service for our 2,200 members and 17,000 Friends of ASOR (FOA).
- Work with ASOR staff members to write and edit copy for internal and external communications including press releases, newsletters, social media posts, and website content for a general audience. Ensure consistent brand messaging across all communications.
- Help prepare materials for presentations, speeches, and meetings.
- Assist with ASOR’s off-site Annual Meeting (in November of each year) by providing general administrative support including but not limited to, processing payments, answering questions, assisting with communications for attendees, and making all attendees feel welcome. Travel to the meeting is required (once per year).
Friends of ASOR
- Expand the communications component of FOA, building membership and generating interest in the programs.
- Manage existing FOA programming including:
- Regional trips
- FOA webinars (with FOA Academic Director)
- The Ancient Near East Today publication and newsletter (with ANE Today Editor)
- Design new FOA programming and oversee operating budget for growing FOA programming.
- Develop and implement a 5-year plan to increase revenue from FOA programs.
Qualifications / Skills Needed:
- Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent work experience) in a related field such as Communications, Public Relations, or Marketing.
- 1-2 years of experience (3-5 preferred) in a communications role, with demonstrated experience and expertise in social media.
- Familiarity with AP Style.
- Understanding of digital marketing concepts and strategies.
- Ability to work effectively in a team environment.
- Excellent attention to detail and accuracy.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills.
- Excellent organizational and time management skills.
- Ability to work independently and handle multiple tasks simultaneously.
- Experience with social media management.
- Proficient in Microsoft Office, graphic/image editing (Adobe Creative Suite, Canva, etc.), and popular social media platforms. Website maintenance experience (WordPress) is a plus.
Compensation and Benefits: Salary $60,000-$75,000, based on experience. Benefits include paid vacation, holidays, and sick time; employer retirement contribution after vesting period (currently 6%); and benefit dollars (currently $650 per month).
How To Apply: E-mail letter of interest, resume, and contact information for three references to Marta Ostovich at programs@asor.org. The letter of interest should discuss how ASOR as an organization fits into the applicant’s training and career goals. Please include your name and “Communications Manager” in the subject line.
We are currently reviewing applications on a rolling basis.
ASOR is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, gender, religion, national origin, disability, veteran status, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, or any other class protected by federal or state law (EEO/AA).
“Holy City of God, Jerusalem, how I long to stand even now at your gates, and go in, rejoicing!” Around 600 CE, Sophronius, a monk from a monastery near Jerusalem who had been posted to Egypt, Sinai, and North Africa, composed a poem expressing his longing to return to the holy city – a wish that was fulfilled thirty years later when he was appointed patriarch. For Sophronius, not even Alexandria, the cosmopolitan cultural capital of the Mediterranean, could compete with Jerusalem. Sophronius’ words echo Psalm 122:1-3, which was written hundreds of years earlier and attributed to King David: “I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord!’ Our feet are standing within your gates, O Jerusalem. Jerusalem – built as a city that is bound firmly together.”
Throughout the ages, pilgrims have shared Sophronius’ desire to stand in the gates of Jerusalem. Why has this poor and isolated mountain town exerted such a powerful hold on billions of people worldwide over the course of millennia? The simple answer is that for followers of the three Abrahamic faiths, Jerusalem is the place where the presence of the God of Israel dwells, and the Last Judgement will take place. It is the meeting point of heaven and earth – the locus of divine and human interaction. In this talk, Prof. Magness explores how these beliefs came to be associated with Jerusalem.
Her most recent books are Jerusalem Through the Ages: From Its Beginnings to the Crusades (New York: Oxford University, March 2024); and Ancient Synagogues in Palestine: A Reevaluation Nearly a Century After Sukenik’s Schweich Lectures. The Schweich Lectures of the British Academy 2022 (London: The British Academy/Oxford University Press, anticipated publication July 2024). Three of Magness’ books have won awards: Masada: From Jewish Revolt to Modern Myth (Princeton: Princeton University, 2019); The Archaeology of Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2002; revised edition 2021); and The Archaeology of the Early Islamic Settlement in Palestine (Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns, 2003). Magness has participated on 20 different excavations in Israel and Greece, including co-directing the 1995 excavations in the Roman siege works at Masada. Since 2011, she has directed excavations at Huqoq in Galilee (
