Career Center

Bard College seeks a Managing Editor for the literary journal, Conjunctions.  The managing editorship is a full-time, exempt position for a period of three years.  The role is office-based on the campus of Bard College, 90 miles north of New York City in Annandale-on-Hudson. 

Published by Bard College and edited by novelist and Bard professor of Literature Bradford Morrow, Conjunctions has been a living notebook for provocative, innovative, immaculately crafted fiction, poetry, narrative nonfiction, and other literary and visual forms since 1981. The journal appears in two separate editions: a book-length biannual print/e-book collection and an online magazine that features the work of a single author each week.

The managing editor oversees many business operations, while Morrow runs the editorial office in New York City and is closely involved with the business side. Although the position is administrative in nature, candidates must be active, passionate, knowledgeable readers of contemporary literature in all forms. The managing editor is provided with an office in Shafer House on the Bard campus which is shared with professor Morrow when he is on campus.

The successful candidate will excel at working in a community that is broadly diverse with regard to race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, gender, nationality, sexual orientation and religion.

Areas of Support
The managing editor reports directly to the editor, and provides any/all direct, personal support to the editor as needed, including correspondence management, travel arrangements, etc. 

Areas of Responsibility 
While all final decisions lie with the editor, and most or all tasks and projects will be executed in coordination with the editor, the managing editor will exercise a degree of self-motivated responsibility in key areas including:

• Phone and email communication with contributors, agents, advertisers, subscribers, distributors, and the general public.

• Subscriptions and orders documentation and fulfillment, and distribution via third-party vendors.

• Marketing and development outreach via email, print, web, and social media. 

• Representing Conjunctions at various festivals, conferences, and panels, and selling at book fairs. 

• Managing two readings series (approximately four readings/year).

• Grants and individual giving campaigns, with assistance from Bard's Office of Development.

• Budget oversight, including processing all revenue and payments, and maintaining accurate records of all accounts.

• Web maintenance, including recording and uploading multimedia (primarily audio) content.

• Overseeing print production of each biannual issue, including working with the editor, typesetter, cover designer, printers, advertisers, and contributors and cover artists (or their representatives).

• Supervising volunteer undergraduate editorial assistants, including providing requisite training, evaluating aptitudes, and assigning and checking work.

• Creating and managing all contracts and agreements with contributors, agents, cover artists, galleries, readers, distributors, and retailers.

• Fielding email submissions and reading submissions as needed.

Required Skill Sets (Nonnegotiable)

• Complete fluency with Mac, Office (Word, Excel), Chicago style, email marketing (Constant Contact or similar), social media (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, others)

• Comfort/proficiency with PC, Content Management System websites, html/css, Adobe (Reader, Acrobat, Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator)

Strongly Preferred Skill Sets and Experience

• Experience with audio editing software (basic freeware such as WavePad acceptable), database software (i.e., FileMaker Pro), and Google Analytics

• Experience with graphic design (i.e. Adobe Illustrator or similar)

• Track record of success in converting online readers and social followers to subscribers and donors.

• Extensive experience in online marketing or in institutional or individual fundraising.

Physical Demands: 

• Must be able to sit for extended periods of time and work in standard office environment

• Must be able to occasionally lift 20 pounds

Please submit a cover letter, resume, and the names of three professional references through Interfolio.com at:  http://apply.interfolio.com/109008

YOUR COVER LETTER WILL, AMONG OTHER THINGS, GIVE A SENSE OF YOUR INVESTMENT IN CONTEMPORARY INNOVATIVE LITERATURE. SEMIFINALISTS MAY BE ASKED TO CONTRIBUTE WORK SAMPLES AND TO DEMONSTRATE THEIR WRITING, EDITORIAL, CODING, AND/OR DESIGN PROFICIENCY

Bard College is an equal opportunity employer and we welcome applications from those who contribute to our diversity. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, mental, or physical disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, familial status, veteran status, or genetic information.

Bard is committed to providing access, equal opportunity, and reasonable accommodation for all individuals in employment practices, services, programs, and activities.

About Bard College

Building on a 150-year history as a competitive and innovative undergraduate institution, Bard College's mission has expanded across the country, around the world, and to meet broader student needs.Now, approximately 2,000 undergraduates study in Annandale and more than 200 graduate students study in Bard programs, plus nearly 1,000 students in our early colleges. Total enrollment for Bard College and its global affiliates is approximately 5,000 students. The undergraduate program at our main campus in the Hudson River Valley of upstate New York retains a reputation for scholarly excellence and civic engagement. We are committed to enriching culture, public life, and democratic discourse by training tomorrow's thought leaders.

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