Job Description

Neighborhood Defender Service (NDS) seeks a Communications and Digital Media Coordinator (Contract) to lead the development and launch of a Community Law School: a public-facing legal education initiative designed to expand access to legal information, empower community members to understand and exercise their rights, and strengthen community-based legal education.

This is a project-based, time-limited role with a primary focus on building a comprehensive, accessible online library of Know Your Rights and legal education materials, paired with outreach and dissemination strategies that connect community members to those resources. The initial Community Law School launch, including associated community education events, will be based in Detroit, where NDS will pilot programming and public-facing engagement in close partnership with local leadership and community members. As part of a connected national organization, the materials, tools, and infrastructure developed through this work will have broader application across NDS’s other communities over time.

The Coordinator will be responsible for developing written and video educational materials, supporting outreach and engagement strategies, and ensuring that these resources are clear, accessible, and responsive to community needs. This role requires strong relationship-building skills and the ability to engage meaningfully and empathetically with community members - particularly those who are justice-impacted - while working closely with attorneys, advocates, and organizational leadership.

While this role contributes to NDS’s overall visibility, its primary purpose is education, access to justice, and community empowerment, rather than general brand management. At a deeper level, this role represents an opportunity to help reimagine how NDS uses digital spaces to meet community members where they are and to strengthen how a community-based, client-centered organization communicates, educates, and connects.

This role is well suited to a Detroit-based communications professional who is comfortable managing a defined project from concept to launch, has hands-on experience producing video and digital content, and can translate complex legal information into clear, community-facing resources while working with diverse teams.

Core Purpose of the Role

The contracted Communications and Digital Media Coordinator exists to build and launch NDS’s Community Law School by creating accessible digital Know Your Rights and legal education resources and supporting outreach strategies that connect community members to those materials. By increasing the organization’s visibility through this work, the role expands access to justice, strengthens community legal knowledge, and advances community-facing legal education as an integral part of NDS’s client-centered, community-based model across offices.

Responsibilities

Community Law School & Legal Education

• Lead development of a comprehensive online Community Law School and Know Your Rights library, including written resources and short-form video content.

• Work closely with the Managing Director for Detroit, attorneys, advocates, and program staff to translate legal information into clear, accurate, and accessible community-facing materials.

• Develop educational content that supports understanding of legal rights, liberties, and interactions with legal systems and law enforcement.

• Ensure materials are responsive to community needs and reflect lived experience, with attention to accessibility, tone, and cultural relevance.

• Organize and structure materials to ensure usability, accessibility, and ease of navigation for a broad public audience.

• Support dissemination of materials through digital platforms and community education efforts, including Know Your Rights events and outreach activities.

• Collaborate with leadership to identify priority topics, audiences, and rollout strategies for Community Law School content.

Digital Outreach, Engagement, & Visibility

• Support development of an outreach and dissemination strategy to increase awareness and use of Community Law School and Know Your Rights materials.

• Manage and update relevant website pages to support legal education content and community-facing resources.

• Create and schedule digital content (e.g., social media posts, email content, short campaigns) that promotes education, engagement, and community awareness.

• Track usage and engagement data to assess reach and inform improvements to content and outreach strategy.

• Identify opportunities for cross-office communication and collaboration to support eventual adaptation of the Community Law School model in other NDS locations.

Community Engagement & Coordination

• Support planning, promotion, and follow-up for Community Law School and Know Your Rights events in Detroit.

• Engage with community members, partners, and justice-impacted individuals with professionalism, empathy, and cultural competency.

• Coordinate with local staff, attorneys, and community partners to ensure materials and outreach efforts reflect on-the-ground realities.

• Collaborate with advancement and communications staff, as applicable, to align outreach efforts and avoid duplication.

Supporting Scope: Organizational Digital Assessment & Recommendations

• Review organization-wide website content and digital materials to assess clarity, accessibility, and alignment with community education goals.

• Provide recommendations for improving or redesigning website content to better support legal education and public access.

• Identify opportunities to strengthen NDS’s overall online presence in ways that advance access to justice and community awareness.

• Collaborate with leadership to prioritize feasible improvements aligned with capacity, resources, and project scope.

Qualifications

Required

• 3–5 years of experience in communications, digital media, content development, or a related field, with demonstrated responsibility for leading or owning discrete projects from development through launch.

• Strong writing and editing skills, with demonstrated ability to translate complex or technical information into clear, accessible content for non-expert audiences.

• Experience managing and updating website content using a content management system (CMS) (e.g., WordPress or comparable platforms).

• Experience creating and managing digital content across social and web platforms, including basic scheduling, publishing, and performance tracking.

• Working knowledge of basic multimedia tools for video or visual content creation (e.g., simple video editing, captioning, or graphics for digital use).

• Demonstrated ability to work directly with community members - particularly those from marginalized or justice-impacted communities - with cultural humility, empathy, and respect.

• Experience collaborating closely with subject-matter experts (e.g., attorneys, advocates, program staff) and building trust across disciplines and roles.

• Strong organizational and project-management skills, with the ability to set priorities, manage timelines, and work independently in a contract-based role.

• Alignment with NDS’s mission and values, including a commitment to access to justice, community empowerment, and client-centered work.

Preferred

• 2+ years of experience developing legal education, Know Your Rights, or other community-facing informational resources.

• 3+ years of experience producing or editing short-form educational video content for web or social platforms.

• Familiarity with basic analytics or engagement tracking tools (e.g., website traffic, social media engagement, or email metrics) and using that information to refine content or outreach.

• Experience working with email or digital outreach tools (e.g., Mailchimp or similar platforms).

• Experience working in nonprofit, legal services, advocacy, or justice-oriented settings, particularly those that are community-based or client-centered.

• Experience supporting or piloting new initiatives, programs, or platforms, with comfort navigating evolving scope and learning through implementation.

• Familiarity with Detroit-based communities or experience working in place-based community education or outreach.

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