Social Media Specialist, Education Initiatives

Most social media jobs hand you an established account, a legacy voice, and a decade of habits you cannot break. This one hands you a blank slate and a running start.

Cato is launching its first social channel dedicated to its educational programs, and we are looking for the person who will build it. Cato University, Cato Courses, the Internship Program, the Research Associate Program, and Student Briefings have never had a social home built to reach their audiences. You will create it, then own it. You will also help grow Sphere Education Initiatives' established channels for educators, working with the program's leaders to create content that supports their goals. Two audiences, two distinct voices, one person keeping both moving.

Building the new channel means deciding how an educational account can cut through a crowded feed and show people why Cato’s ideas and programs are valuable. You will work with program owners and the marketing team to define the program’s voice, tone, and overall look and feel, then set promotional priorities across Meta, X, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, and other platforms.

This hybrid position reports to the Marketing Director and is based in Washington, DC, with in-office work required every Thursday and Friday.

The salary range is $70,000 to $85,000 per year, based on the successful candidate’s educational background, experience, and skills.

TO BE CONSIDERED FOR THIS POSITION, YOU MUST SUBMIT THE TALENT MARKET APPLICATION.About Cato

The Cato Institute is a public policy research organization, a think tank, dedicated to the principles of individual liberty, limited government, free markets, and peace.

Founded in 1977 and named for Cato’s Letters, the 18th-century essays that inspired the architects of the American Revolution, Cato conducts independent, nonpartisan research across a wide range of policy issues.

Cato’s education programs carry that work to the next generation. Cato University, Cato Courses, the Internship Program, the Research Assistant Program, and Student Briefings introduce students and curious learners to the ideas behind a free society, meeting them where they already are. Sphere Education Initiatives gives educators viewpoint-diverse resources to bring civil discourse into their classrooms. Growing the reach of these programs is what this role exists to do.

Cato Institute is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Key Duties & Responsibilities

• A new social channel for Cato’s educational programs, from account setup to established presence
• Driving registrations for Cato Courses, Cato’s online learning platform built around the policy questions shaping the world right now
• Driving attendance and geographic reach for Cato University, the Institute’s premier in-person series for college and graduate students
• Promotion and outreach that drives applications to the Internship Program and the Research Associate Program, which place students and early-career talent alongside working Cato scholars
• Attendance at Student Briefings, which bring students face to face with the ideas behind the policy questions of the moment
• Sphere Education Initiatives’ existing channels, including continued audience growth among educators
• A documented voice, tone, and look and feel for the new channel, developed together with program owners and the marketing team, so the whole team is aligned
• Promotional priorities across five student programs sharing one channel, plus a distinct editorial approach for each audience knowing exactly who is on the other side of each post is the job