Communications Manager

About the Debt Collective

The Debt Collective is an experimental union for debtors. We build collective power to fight for better conditions in our financial lives through the renegotiation and abolition of debts, the public funding of social goods (i.e. education, healthcare, housing), anti-capitalist and anti-racist economic policies, and other efforts to build a more just society. Our current campaigns include the national fight for full student debt cancellation and publicly-funded tuition-free higher education, as well as initiatives around tenant power, school lunch debt, and medical debt.

Overview

The Debt Collective is seeking a Communications Manager to support our rapidly growing issue advocacy, political campaigns, and union-building efforts. The Communications Manager will be responsible for expanding our communications efforts through traditional press, social media, and email programs and managing/coordinating the comms team. This role will help bring the Debt Collective's debtor analysis into mainstream and social media. They will support the organization’s communications success across our various debt campaigns and audiences. Communications to our growing membership base will be a focus of this role.

This position reports to the Organizing Director and Executive Directors and works closely with the communications team. It is a remote role and requires full-time availability and some travel.

Responsibilities

• Help develop an overarching, ongoing communications strategy across campaigns and issue areas, with a particular focus on housing/tenant power, medical debt/healthcare, and school lunch debt.
• Build out and update a comms calendar to coordinate work across campaigns and coordinate colleagues
• Draft communications materials, including press releases, media advisories, op-eds, talking points, pitches, emails, and letters to the editor.
• Track media coverage related to core Debt Collective issues, such as student debt, eviction, and housing debt, across national, regional, state, and local markets.
• Collaborate with the team to build out and maintain a national press lists
• Monitor news coverage across our debt campaigns
• Develop and pitch media stories related to the Debt Collective’s campaigns for national and local television, podcasts, radio, print, and online outlets.
• Build and develop Debt Collective’s digital communications strategy across platforms.
• Optimize new and existing channels to drive members into action and increase engagement.
• Prepare team members and union members for media interviews and public appearances.
• Develop and lead a mass communications program, including sending high-quality emails and SMSs to our membership to grow our fundraising, build our lists, and deepen engagement.
• Produce a regular newsletter for members.
• Manage and coordinate communications staff.

Qualifications & Skills

• 3-5 years of experience in communications, journalism, or related fields.
• Excellent writing and verbal communication skills.
• Interest in finance and public policy — a big part of the job is translating and communicating complex topics in engaging, accessible, radical ways.
• Organizing and/or managerial experience a plus
• Highly organized with strong attention to detail.
• Creative and strategic thinker who can generate ideas for media outreach and who is dedicated to using media not only to gain attention but to build power.
• A collaborative team player who thrives in a remote work environment.
• Familiarity with Google Suite, Slack, Zoom, and Mailchimp.
• Commitment to economic justice, debtor organizing, and social transformation.

Application

To apply, please send your resume, a brief paragraph describing your interest, and a writing sample to jobs@debtcollective.org with “Communications Manager Application” in the subject line June 1, 2025. People from marginalized communities, including Black and brown people, women, LGBTQ+ individuals, and those from working-class backgrounds, are strongly encouraged to apply.