EDUCATION REPORTER: HOUSTON ISD

Opening Statement: We are seeking a reporter to cover the Houston Independent School District, the largest public school district in Texas. The district of 280 campuses and about 178,000 students is a behemoth that demands coverage both as an educational and governmental powerhouse. HISD is now subject to a state takeover based on the repeated failure of a single school, even though the district earned the second-highest rating in state’s accountability system. This creates a unique dynamic within the district and in state and regional politics.

What will you do?

• Juggle daily and enterprise stories that dig into educational effectiveness, explore the complex social and mental health needs of students, examine the safety concerns of urban campuses and serve as the watchdog to the district’s nearly $2 billion budget.
• Dive into how Houston public schools compete in a landscape that includes homeschooling, charter schools, private schools, suburban districts and possibly vouchers
• Help readers make education choices through a variety of utility content. Stories that tell parents how to enroll students in high-performing schools, get special education services or become involved in school improvement efforts are as important as reporting on policy and bureaucracy.
• Produce a steady drumbeat of stories of varying lengths and formats, including short-term and long-term enterprise stories; “key takeaways” and live coverage of school board meetings and events
• Write with clarity and authority, avoiding government and educational jargon

What will it take to be successful?

Our Houston ISD reporter will be able to balance covering a large government – and the bounty of financially lucrative salaries and contracts awarded through it – with covering education policy, school inequities and student achievement. This person will work closely with a second Chronicle education reporter whose focus includes suburban school districts, as well as a team of suburban reporters/producers who cover community news.

To be successful, the HISD reporter must:

• Work collaboratively with editors, other reporters, photographers, the digital desk and the data visualization team to tell impactful stories across platforms that attract and retain subscribers
• HISD’s student body is almost two-thirds Latino, so fluency in Spanish is preferred
• Have expertise with social media, both in terms of creating content and engaging audience. This includes posting short “starter versions” of stories on HoustonChronicle.com before tweeting them or promoting them on other social platforms
• Communicate quickly and effectively with journalists to break news online and follow up when appropriate
• Have at least three years of experience as a beat reporter, preferably on an education beat in an established newsroom
• Be detail-oriented, with a proven ability to effectively juggle multiple tasks in a deadline-driven environment
• Understanding of Texas and federal open-records laws preferred

About the Houston Chronicle:

The Houston Chronicle serves Houston’s 2.3 million residents — as well as all of Texas — with content and marketing solutions across two of Houston’s largest websites, HoustonChronicle.com and Chron.com, along with our newspaper and magazine brands. The content and innovative business solutions we provide invite readers to join conversations about communities we’ve been helping prosper for more than 120 years.

About Hearst Newspapers:

With 2,500 employees across the nation, HNP encompasses a network of 24 daily and 52 weekly publications, including the San Francisco Chronicle, Houston Chronicle, San Antonio Express-News and Albany Times Union, several top digital-only news and lifestyle sites, marketing services businesses, and entertainment businesses such as King Features Syndicate.

At HNP, we are investing in new and innovative ways to tell stories – growing newsrooms, diversifying tools, evolving platforms – to support the millions of people who trust us each month to help them make decisions, take action and be inspired.

Be a part of something bigger – your headline awaits.

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