Publications Specialist Level 2 – Magazine Editor - Federal Highway Administration

Description

The Publications Specialist Level 2 / Magazine Editor will manage the editorial and production lifecycle for FHWA’s Public Roads magazine and related publication products. This senior-level role is responsible for publication cycle management, editorial coordination, production scheduling, version control, approval tracking, quality assurance, stakeholder coordination, and final distribution support.

The successful candidate will bring strong periodical production experience, editorial judgment, publication workflow expertise, and the ability to coordinate across authors, technical reviewers, editors, designers, legal reviewers, public affairs personnel, and FHWA stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities

• Oversee the full lifecycle of magazine and publication products from content intake through final distribution.
• Manage production schedules, publication calendars, article tracking, review cycles, approval workflows, and final release milestones.
• Support production of quarterly Public Roads magazine issues and related promotional materials.
• Track article versions and ensure appropriate approvals are secured throughout the publication process.
• Serve as liaison between authors, technical SMEs, writers, editors, layout/design teams, reviewers, legal counsel, public affairs, and publication stakeholders.
• Provide high-level editorial support, content development assistance, and publication quality control.
• Ensure strict version control throughout editing, layout, review, and document production.
• Confirm all final articles and magazine content meet GPO Style Manual, Chicago Manual of Style, FHWA/TFHRC style requirements, and Section 508 accessibility standards.
• Coordinate layout reviews, proofing, formatting specifications, distribution requirements, and archive package preparation.
• Support publication logistics, including documentation, approvals, electronic files, print files, archival files, permissions, and final deliverable packages.
• Support marketing and outreach coordination related to Public Roads magazine, including issue promotion and stakeholder communication.
• Identify workflow issues and recommend improvements to improve timeliness, consistency, and quality.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Communications, English, Journalism, Publishing, Technical Communication, or a closely related field.
• 7–10 years of progressively responsible experience in editorial management, publication management, magazine production, or publishing workflows.
• Experience overseeing recurring publication cycles, preferably for a technical, research, transportation, or specialty publication.
• Strong experience with substantive editing, copyediting, proofreading, version control, and publication quality assurance.
• Experience managing complex approval workflows involving technical and creative teams.
• Strong knowledge of federal publishing, Section 508 accessibility, style guides, and publication standards.
• Strong organizational, communication, and stakeholder coordination skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree or advanced professional certification in publishing, communications, journalism, editing, or a related field.
• Experience supporting FHWA, USDOT, TFHRC, or another federal publication program.
• Experience with transportation, highway, infrastructure, engineering, research, or technical publications.
• Experience managing a quarterly magazine or recurring technical periodical.
• Familiarity with GPO Style Manual, Chicago Manual of Style, federal records, permissions, copyright, and publication release workflows.