[Hiring] Education Reporter @CalMatters

Role Description

CalMatters is seeking two experienced reporters to cover California education. The first position is to cover K-12 schools, while the other position will focus on early childhood education.

The K-12 reporter will cover:

• The largest K-12 system in the country, with nearly 10,000 schools serving more than 5 million students.

The early education reporter will focus on:

• The formative years of childhood, from infancy to 5 years old.

Both beats will focus on the systems and institutions that purport to support students or young children, covering areas including:

• How well children are learning.
• How obstacles are affecting outcomes.
• The impact of technology on children and education.
• The disparities among different groups.

A key aspect of the job will focus on what works as well as what doesn't.

What You’ll Cover

• Finance and policy — Cover statewide policy and finance decisions, focusing on specific districts or regions to tell important stories.
• Legislation — Track pending legislation and focus on bills that have the potential to change how students are learning.
• Key players — Highlight students, teachers, and parents as the core of education coverage.
• The use of technology, including AI, in education and the impact of technology, including social media, on children.

What You’ll Do

• Approach beats with a focus on accountability, telling readers what isn’t working and why.
• Identify the most relevant issues and policy decisions in the California K-12 system and early education landscape.
• Look for the human impact in every story, finding those most affected — students, young children, teachers, and parents.
• Collaborate with the data team, audience engagement team, other content teams, and partner news organizations.
• Work with radio, video, social media, and audience specialists to put work on various platforms.

Compensation and Benefits

• Full-time positions based in California, represented by the Pacific Media Workers Guild.
• Preference for candidates located in the greater Sacramento area, but not required.
• Salary ranges: $75,000-$85,000 per year and $95,000-$105,000 per year, depending on experience and skills.
• Comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental, and vision insurance (95% employer-paid for you and your dependents).
• Paid family leave, FSA/HSA accounts, 401(k) match of up to 4%, life insurance at no cost, cell/internet stipend, and professional development funds.

How To Apply

If you're interested, provide a resume, cover letter, and work samples. In your cover letter, please tell us which reporting role best suits you and why, and how you would approach this role.

We believe strongly in personal and authentic engagement in our recruitment process and want to hear from you. We ask that you answer these questions yourself without the aid of AI or other automated tools.

Please do not contact the hiring manager or other staffers directly. If you have questions, or a reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, don't hesitate to contact [email protected] .

Company Description

CalMatters is an award-winning nonprofit, nonpartisan news venture dedicated to explaining the policy and politics of America’s biggest state and the world’s fifth largest economy. In 2024, we merged with The Markup, a nonprofit national news publication that challenges technology to serve the public good.

• We produce vivid, original multimedia journalism, data-driven news analyses, and watchdog accountability reporting.
• Our work is distributed at no cost to more than 250 media partners.
• Our success metric isn’t clicks — it’s impact.
• We have the most diverse major newsroom in California, working alongside experienced journalists in a supportive, collaborative atmosphere.