What are the responsibilities and job description for the Public Affairs Specialist 2 (Limited Duration/Job Rotation) position at Water Resources Department?
Initial Posting Date:
03/28/2025
Application Deadline:
04/10/2025
Agency:
Water Resources Department
Salary Range:
$5,842 - $8,967
Position Type:
Employee
Position Title:
Public Affairs Specialist 2 (Limited Duration/Job Rotation)
Job Description:
The Oregon Water Resources Department (OWRD) is seeking an experienced government communicator. The position is stationed in Salem, Oregon with a hybrid work remote option as your schedule is agreed upon by your manager. This position is available to applicants as limited duration for up to 6 months. State employees may apply for a job rotation with manager approval. Come join this hardworking team!
Working Title: Public Information and Resiliency Specialist
Classification: Public Affairs Specialist 2
Position Type: Full Time, Limited Duration (up to 6 months)
Representation: SEIU represented
FLSA Status: Exempt, not eligible for overtime or compensatory time
Monthly Compensation: The monthly salary range before PERS* will be $5,842-$8,967 | after PERS* will be $6,245-$9,588
Work Location: North Mall Office Building, 725 Summer St. NE Suite A, Salem Oregon 97301 and hybrid remote based on the needs of the agency.
Hybrid/Remote Work: Hybrid work
Recruitment timeline: Will interview in mid- April with start date May 1. Subject to change based on applicant pool and unexpected circumstances.
If you are an internal state employee interested in a job rotation, please consider the following:
- If applying for a job rotation, you must have your manager’s approval before applying for this opportunity. You may submit their written approval with your application materials or, if selected for interview, bring it to your interview.
- A job rotation is usually for a specific duration, however, if you enter into the role and for some reason it doesn’t work out, you or the manager can end the rotation early and you would return to your base position.
- The successful candidate may be eligible for work out of class compensation within this classification's salary range.
- The successful candidate will remain eligible for cost-of-living increases and regular salary adjustments, as applicable, and will remain in their permanent classification, salary range and representation.
- This job rotation can be terminated at any time without prejudice by either party.
About the
Oregon Water Resources Department
Our Vision
The vision of the Oregon Water Resources Department is to assure sufficient and sustainable water supplies are available to meet current and future needs.
Core Values
Integrity – We are accountable for all that we do. We act with honesty and promote transparency.
Service – We are dedicated to providing outstanding service and treating everyone equitably in our management and stewardship of state resources.
Technical Excellence – We base our resource decisions on law, science, and expertise.
Teamwork – We are united in our mission, relying on one another and working together with the communities we serve.
Forward-Looking – We seek innovative and practical solutions to the water challenges of today and tomorrow.
2019-2024 Strategic Plan
The Oregon Water Resources Department’s strategic priorities for 2019-2024 are to:
- Modernize our management of Oregon’s surface water and groundwater resources to meet instream and out-of-stream uses
- Work to secure Oregon’s instream and out-of-stream water future in the face of increasing water scarcity
- Foster a forward-looking team dedicated to serving Oregonians with integrity and excellence
The Oregon Water Resources Department is committed to creating a workplace culture that understands and appreciates differences among people and is welcoming and inclusive to all. By fostering fairness and equity in its work culture, the Department strives to improve services for all Oregonians. We acknowledge that not all people have experienced equitable opportunities or fair treatment. We are committed to increasing our awareness and understanding of historic injustices and building a foundation for meaningful change. We value a wide range of professional and lived experiences, and people of underrepresented communities are strongly encouraged to apply.
About our Team
This position is located in the Director’s Office and is a member of the Director’s Office policy team. The Policy Section operates as a team to ensure that all functions of the section are completed efficiently and to distribute workloads evenly. In addition, the team is highly encouraged to share ideas to identify the best outcomes, peer-review work, make informed recommendations, and help one another in completing projects. In addition to communications, this position may work with other members of the Policy Section team as needed on administrative rule development and coordination, the Integrated Water Resources Strategy, special projects, policy research, legislative coordination, public records requests.
About the Position
The primary purpose of the public information and resiliency coordinator is to serve as the agency’s lead on communications, analyzing and planning communication strategies to integrate with agency goals and objectives, and managing media relationships. The public information and resiliency coordinator will be responsible for the communications program within the agency, including communications planning, implementation, and development of communications materials. The position will serve as the agency’s primary press contact and spokesperson, developing agency messages and providing advice to agency management on how to respond to media inquiries. The position will be responsible for developing and implementing communications plans in support of the agency’s mission, Integrated Water Resources Strategy, Strategic Plan, and other strategic and policy initiatives in a way that is transparent, inclusive, and professional.
The position will also assist in preparing for and responding to emergencies at dams in coordination with the Dam Safety Program staff. This position works diligently to improve the Department’s ability to keep the public, including historically and currently underserved communities, informed both during drought emergencies and dam safety incidents. The position will provide planning, and communications support to help Oregon communities, including historically and currently underserved communities, be more prepared for droughts and other natural hazards in a changing climate.
Minimum Qualifications
A Bachelor's Degree in Business or Public Administration, Public Relations, Marketing, Journalism, the Behavioral or Social Sciences or related degree and two years professional level experience in Public Relations or Affairs
OR
Five years experience directly related to the position under recruitment; two of the five years must have been at the professional level.
Preferred Qualifications
Ideal candidates will also bring some or all of the following preferred qualifications:
- A strong background that demonstrates the ability to plan and implement communication strategies
- Experience in media relations, media interview preparation, and communication material development
- Ability to accurately distill highly technical (law, policy, and science) and complex information for general audiences
- Ability to develop culturally and equitably responsive and inclusive communications for wide and diverse audiences
- Familiar with applying accessibility language, principles, guidelines and law to a variety of communication formats
- Experience researching and fact-checking information
- Ability to exercise strategic thinking and effective judgment to prepare for and respond to high-visibility issues and events
- Demonstrated success at developing internal and external relationships
- Highly organized, detail-oriented, with an ability to anticipate needs and exercise initiative
- Strong skills in both written and verbal communication
- Experience with Excel, Outlook, Word, and PowerPoint
- Ability to exercise discretion and confidentiality
Note: In addition to your related work experience and education, we will use both the minimum and desired qualifications above to determine whom to interview. Please make sure all your relevant qualifications are clearly demonstrated in your application materials. Your application materials may be evaluated on spelling, grammar, punctuation, attention to detail, and presentation.
We are most interested in finding the most qualified candidate for the job, and that candidate may not meet every one of our listed preferred qualifications. Paid and unpaid experience may count towards the preferred qualifications. If you are excited about this position, we encourage you to apply. If you are unsure as to whether you meet the preferred qualifications of this position, please contact us to discuss your application.
Working Conditions
Working conditions primarily involve an office/cubicle or teleworking environment. This position requires a valid driver license and an acceptable driving record. Travel may be necessary as required to respond to emergencies, conduct emergency response exercises, or work with reporters. Work may include meeting with stakeholders and public officials, facilitating public meetings, and public presentations. This position will interact with the media, including conducting interviews via phone, video, email, or in-person. This position is expected to work in-person and remote with other sections of the agency and develop strong working relationships to support the agency’s mission and priorities.
Teleworking or in the office work schedule will be determined upon agreement and approval of supervisor.
What’s in it for you?
In addition to offering a culture of care and inclusivity and working among a highly skilled team to dive into meaningful work, we also offer a
competitive benefits package
that includes:-
Exceptional medical, vision and dentalplans with employees paying 1 to 5% of the total premium.
- Leave accrual starting at 8 hours of sick and 8 hours of vacation leave per month, with your vacation leave accruals increasing every 5 years.
- Access to an additional four days of discretionary leave - 3 days of personal business leave and one day of Governor’s Leave each year.
- Eleven paid holidays per year.
-
Membership in the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS)including a pension and employer contributions to the Individual Account Program.
-
Optional benefits (such as term life insurance, long-term and short-term disability, long-term care, health and dependent care flexible spending accounts, enrollment in the Oregon Savings Growth Plan, a deferred compensation program with a wide variety of investment options).
-
The opportunity to receive loan forgiveness under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program(must qualify).
Application Requirements
Please ensure to provide your resume and cover letter for full consideration.
- Provide a cover letter.
- Provide a resume.
Please monitor both your email and Workday account for updates regarding this recruitment. You may be asked to submit additional information after initial application. If you have questions about this job posting, please contact Human Resources at
WRD_DL_HR@water.oregon.gov
.
Current State of Oregon employees must apply through your employee Workday account.
Important Information
PERS Salary Information
NON-PERS ELIGIBLE (Includes most new hires to state government. Employees typically gain PERS eligibility after six months of state service. PERS ELIGIBLE (Typically current or former employees of Oregon state or local government, public schools, universities, etc.) The salary listed will state base monthly salary, which is BEFORE PERS.
Accommodations
If you need assistance to participate in the application process, including an accommodation request under the American with Disabilities Act, we invite you to contact the recruiter for accommodation requests under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), application questions or job-specific questions please contact our HR team at wrd_dl_hr@water.oregon.gov.
Future Vacancies
This applicant pool may be used to fill additional vacancies as they occur over the next three (3) months.
Work Authorization
The Oregon Water Resources Department does not offer visa sponsorships. Within three days of hire, all applicants will be required to complete the US Department of Homeland Security Form I-9, confirming authorization to work in the United States.
Veterans
If you are an eligible veteran and you meet the qualifications, veterans’ preference points will be added to your score. For more information on veterans’ preference points visit
www.oregonjobs.org
and select Veterans resources under Resources. Please do not attach veteran documentation to your initial application, after you have applied you will be sent a task in your Workday account to provide your veteran documentation at that time.
Application Review Process
In addition to your related work experience and education, we will use both the minimum and desired qualifications above to determine whom to interview. Please make sure all your relevant qualifications are clearly demonstrated in your application materials. Your application materials may be evaluated on spelling, grammar, punctuation, attention to detail, and presentation.
The Oregon Water Resources Department is an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action Employer Committed to Workforce Diversity.
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