Communications and Engagement Manager, Public Safety
About this role
The Communications & Engagement Manager leads the development, execution, and continuous refinement of a comprehensive communications and community-engagement strategy for Vanderbilt University Public Safety (VUPS). This role is essential to advancing VUPS’s mission and supporting the Chief’s four guiding imperatives: Institutional Trust & Legitimacy; Operational Excellence & Strategic Innovation; Community Collaboration & Transparency; and Training, Wellness, Talent Development & Retention.
Reporting to the Senior Director of Communications & Marketing for the Division of Operations and the Campus Network (OCN) —with a close partnership to the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Public Safety—the manager ensures that VUPS communicates with clarity, transparency, and accessibility. This position translates complex public safety operations into community-centered narratives; builds sustained engagement with students, faculty, staff, neighbors, and external partners; and strengthens trust in VUPS through proactive, human-centered storytelling.
The ideal candidate is a strategic communicator, relationship-builder, and creative problem-solver who can operate effectively in a fast-paced environment, collaborate across teams, and help elevate VUPS as a national model for modern, community-centered campus safety.
Departmental Overview:
The Division of Operations and the Campus Network (OCN) supports the university's academic mission by delivering a broad range of essential operational services and initiatives that enable teaching, learning, research, and residential life. With a focus on excellence, accountability, and innovation, the division encompasses Auxiliary Services, Public Safety, Equal Access and Opportunity, Dialogue Vanderbilt, and Vanderbilt University–New York City. The division is committed to ensuring operational excellence, enhancing community well-being, and advancing strategic goals through collaborative partnerships and a people-first philosophy.
Vanderbilt University Public Safety is a full-service campus safety organization that includes police, security, and emergency management operations serving the Vanderbilt enterprise. The department is committed to innovation, excellence, community partnership, and continuous improvement.
Key Functions and Expected Performance:
Communications Strategy & Execution
Develop and implement an integrated VUPS communication strategy aligned with the Chief’s four imperatives and the Division of Operations and the and the Campus Network (OCN) goals.
Produce clear, accessible content across channels including MyVU stories, campus messages, briefings, social media, digital signage, video, and VUPS web pages.
Create and manage plain-language transparency explainers (e.g., body-worn cameras, Field Stop Receipts, advisory board, emergency response expectations, “What happens when you call VUPS?”).
Establish a quarterly Public Safety Brief from the Chief and maintain a consistent, predictable communication cadence to the Vanderbilt community.
Support crisis and incident communications in collaboration with the Operations and the Campus Network (OCN) Communications team and campus partners.
Ensure alignment with institutional tone, accessibility standards, brand consistency, and regulatory requirements.
Community & Student Engagement
Lead the design and execution of a comprehensive community engagement program that strengthens relationships with students, faculty, staff, neighbors, and partners.
Support the establishment and ongoing facilitation of the Police Advisory Board, ensuring meaningful two-way feedback and transparent follow-through.
Coordinate engagement with student groups (VSG, GSC, Residential Colleges, international student groups, affinity organizations) and develop programming that meets community needs.
Lead student-facing campaigns such as VandySafe awareness, safety education initiatives, and collaborative events (safety fairs, AMA sessions, Coffee with VUPS, campus tours).
Develop and oversee a structured Liaison Officer Program that connects VUPS officers with specific student and faculty communities.
Support campuswide emergency preparedness programming with consistent communications and education.
Operational Excellence & Internal Partnerships
Work in close partnership with VUPS leadership to understand ongoing modernization efforts (Security Operations Center, Threat Assessment & Mitigation Unit, EOP updates, training investments) and translate them into community-facing stories.
Develop internal communications for VUPS leadership to ensure clarity, alignment, and morale across police, security, dispatch, and emergency management units.
Partner with Facilities, Student Affairs, Human Resources, Emergency Preparedness, and other units to coordinate safety-related messaging.
Support officer training, recognition, recruitment, and retention through storytelling and visibility of VUPS’s professionalism and culture.
Digital Strategy, Data, & Feedback
Manage the VUPS website, safety resource hubs, and digital communication channels to ensure accuracy, clarity, and user-centered design.
Track and report metrics on email engagement, social reach, web traffic, safety campaign effectiveness, and community sentiment.
Establish feedback loops including surveys, QR code channels, and follow-up communications (“You Said, We Did”).
Provide regular analytics reports and recommendations to VUPS and OCN leadership.
Supervisory Relationships:
This position may supervise student employees, interns, or part-time communications assistants.
Experience and Education:
Bachelor’s degree required.
Minimum of 3 years of experience in communications, public affairs, marketing, or community engagement.
Experience in public safety, crisis communication, higher education, or government strongly preferred.
Experience partnering with or communicating to student audiences is strongly preferred.
Skills:
Exceptional writing, editing, proofreading, and visual storytelling skills across formats.
Demonstrated ability to communicate complex operational or policy concepts in clear, accessible language.
Proven experience designing and managing communications strategies that build trust in sensitive or high-stakes environments.
Strong interpersonal skills; able to build relationships with officers, students, faculty, staff, and external stakeholders.
High emotional intelligence; ability to convey empathy, clarity, and professionalism during difficult or high-pressure situations.
Strong project management skills; highly organized; able to manage multiple simultaneous priorities.
Comfort with analytics and data-informed storytelling.
Familiarity with platforms such as Microsoft Teams, WordPress, Emma, and basic design/video tools.
Ability to work collaboratively across a complex organization with shared leadership models.
At Vanderbilt University , our work - regardless of title or role - is in service to an important and noble mission in which every member of our community serves in advancing knowledge and transforming lives on a daily basis. Located in Nashville, Tennessee, on a 330+ acre campus and arboretum dating back to 1873, Vanderbilt is proud to have been named as one of “America’s Best Large Employers” as well as a top employer in Tennessee and the Nashville metropolitan area by Forbes for several years running. We welcome those who are interested in learning and growing professionally with an employer that strives to create, foster and sustain opportunities as an employer of choice.
We understand you have a choice when choosing where to work and pursue a career. We understand you are unique and have a story. We want to hear it. We encourage you to apply today so that you might become a part of our story.
Company at a glance
Our Interdisciplinary Materials Science (IMS) program offers a unique multidisciplinary experience where students design their own curriculum, and collaborate with faculty and students from engineering, chemistry, physics, and medicine, who are working on some the biggest of society's challenges.
The IMS Ph.D. program is integrated with VINSE (Vanderbilt Institute of Nanoscale Science and Engineering), which boasts brand new state-of-the-art fabrication and characterization facilities. Resources include a cleanroom, analytical/nanocrystal support core, and an advanced imaging suite.
Our students rotate through three different labs in the first year to learn the culture of each research group and the advising style of the mentors prior to project/adviser selection. We offer a highly customized curriculum where students can select courses from a variety of technical departments to support their research project. This is work is supported by research facilities equipped with the latest instrumentation with outstanding research programs and faculty, where IMS researchers use nanotechnology to address the world’s most important challenges in energy, health, and security.
Our graduates work in the government (FDA, NIH, US patent office), in industry (Google, Johnson & Johnson, Dow, DuPont, Exxon, and Biotech start-ups), and in academia.
For more information contact
Josh Caldwell, IMS Director
Sarah Ross, Program Manager
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