Communications Specialist

The Virginia Passenger Rail Authority (VPRA) is a political subdivision established by Chapter 1230 of the 2020 Acts of Assembly. VPRA is responsible for promoting, sustaining, and expanding the availability of passenger and commuter rail services in the Commonwealth, including all administrativeand fiduciary responsibilities for Virginia's state-supported passenger rail services. The VPRA also funds Virginia Railway Express (VRE) and administers all capital expansion projects, infrastructure, and land acquisitions related to the $3.7 billion Transforming Rail in Virginia initiative, which will double Amtrak and VRE service in Virginia over the next decade. The VPRA acts as a "responsible public entity" for the acquisition, construction, improvement, maintenance, or operation, or any combination thereof, of a "qualifying transportation facility" under the Public Private Partnership Act of 1995.

Do you thrive in crafting compelling content and building strong community connections? If so, VPRA is looking for you! The External Affairs & Communications Team is looking for a part-time Communication Specialist to support the mission of the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority (VPRA) by developing engaging digital and social media content, managing constituent communications, and strengthening relationships with the public, partners, and stakeholders. This role plays a key part in maintaining VPRA's external presence across various media channels while contributing to internal communication and outreach efforts. The ideal candidate is a proactive communicator with strong skills in writing, design, and organization who thrives in a collaborative, mission-driven environment.

This part-time hourly position will work up to 30 hours per week (based on workload) and may be located in either VPRA's office in Richmond, Virginia, or Alexandria, Virginia.

Responsibilities

• Under the direction of the Director of External Affairs & Communications, the Communications Specialist will,
• Develop informative, diverse, and engaging digital content to support VPRA programs, projects, and organizational priorities.
• Act as primary point of contact to maintain and update the VPRA external website, with secondary and tertiary support from other team members, ensuring compliance with accessibility standards, strong user experience, and adherence to VPRA brand guidelines.
• Responsible for timely uploading of public documents, including but not limited to documents in support of and in response to Board meetings.
• Monitor, maintain, and improve analytics dashboards for social media and the website; identify trends and opportunities for continuous improvement.
• Manage the social media content calendar, including proactive planning, content creation, scheduling, and maintaining a robust project photo library, for platforms including, but not limited to, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and NextDoor.
• Coordinate the publishing of website and social media content, including news updates, project milestones, and events.
• Assist in managing incoming constituent inquiries through the Contact Us inbox, public inquiry channels, constituent questions from the Governor's office, and the Construction Disruption hotline; ensure timely, accurate responses and maintain tracking and reporting systems.
• Assist with public outreach events, stakeholder meetings, scheduling, and logistics.
• Create appropriately branded materials for internal and external use, including presentations, spreadsheets, fact sheets, brochures, postcards, annual wall calendar, and other communication materials.
• Build strong working relationships with Operations and Project Management teams to understand VPRA projects and communicate them effectively.
• Perform other duties as assigned by the Director of External Affairs & Communications.

• Bachelor's degree; equivalent combination of training and experience may be used to meet the minimum qualifications.

• Degree in Communications, Journalism, or related field.

• A minimum of four (4) years of relevant experience, with a focus on communications.
• Experience with content management, specifically creating and maintaining digital content for websites and social media platforms.
• Demonstrated analytical skills in writing, editing, and proofreading documents, articles, or publications.
• Experience managing public inquiries or customer service communications.
• Familiarity with analytics tools.
• Intermediate graphic design experience (e.g., Canva, Adobe Creative Suite, etc.)
• Experience with Microsoft Office Suite, Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• Knowledge of journalism, public relations, and general communications principles and practices.
• Ability to work well under pressure and manage fluctuating priorities to meet deadlines.

• Understanding of Commonwealth government structures and decision-making processes.
• Experience working with government agencies, transportation organizations, or infrastructure projects.
• Knowledge of the bill enactment process and bill tracking systems in Virginia and the U.S. Congress.
• Ability to research legislative history and the status of pending legislation and to analyze pending and enacted legislation.