Publicity & Travel Coordinator

Scholastic Book Fairs • New York, NY

1d • Hybrid

About The Position

For over a century, Scholastic has connected children to stories that ignite imagination, inspire curiosity, and build a lifelong love of reading. As the world’s largest publisher and distributor of children’s books, Scholastic champions authors and illustrators who shape culture, expand empathy, and celebrate the power of storytelling. The Travel Coordinator supports the Trade Marketing and Publicity teams by managing all travel logistics for authors, illustrators, and staff traveling on behalf of Scholastic’s Children’s Book Group. This position ensures that every trip—from national book tours to major literary festivals—runs smoothly, efficiently, and within budget. The role requires exceptional attention to detail, comfort navigating contracts and financial processes, and the ability to collaborate across internal departments and Scholastic’s travel agency of record. The position works cross-functionally with teams to maintain compliance with company policies, track approvals and documentation, and prepare travel summaries and spend reports to support transparency, forecasting, and continuous improvement.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience.
• 3+ years of experience in travel coordination, event logistics, or publicity operations (publishing or entertainment experience strongly preferred).
• Demonstrated experience managing budgets, expense coding, and reconciliations.
• Strong understanding of travel systems and vendor management; familiarity with Direct Travel, Concur, or similar platforms preferred.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to manage multiple high-priority travel itineraries simultaneously.
• Proactive problem-solving and calm under pressure.
• Strong vendor negotiation and relationship-management skills.
• Discretion and professionalism when handling sensitive author information.
• Highly organized and detail-oriented with strong follow-through.
• Comfortable navigating complex approvals and interpreting contract language.
• Passion for children’s books, authors, and storytelling.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate all travel logistics, including flights, hotels, ground transportation, and event routing, for authors, illustrators, and staff attending tours, festivals, conventions, and media events.
• Create and maintain detailed author and staff travel profiles, ensuring all personal preferences and information are up to date.
• Review and reference author contracts to ensure all travel arrangements align with negotiated terms and individual requirements.
• Serve as the primary point of contact with Scholastic’s travel agency of record, Direct Travel, including the VIP desk for elevated, end-to-end author and staff travel support.
• Responsible for financial overrides.
• Identify which profiles are in “Okay to Go” status, and establish and document clear approval authorities to streamline trip confirmations and minimize Finance intervention.
• Assign relevant business stakeholders (e.g., publicists, marketing leads) as delegates for visibility into travel itineraries and changes.
• Provide on-call support for urgent changes or issues during travel, including weekends and evenings.
• Manage the departmental travel for the Trade Marketing and Publicity teams, taking full financial responsibility for coding, reconciliation, and oversight.
• Maintain familiarity with all processes and procedures and regulations defined by Corporate finance team.
• Create and maintain American Express cards for authors, ensuring secure use.
• Complete and review all financial reconciliation, expense coding, and reporting for travel-related costs.
• Define and implement a clear travel approval process, balancing efficiency and compliance.
• Partner with Marketing Operations to ensure accurate forecasting and cost tracking across tours and campaigns.

Benefits

• Full suite of health and wellness benefits (including a $0 deductible Medical Plan)
• Retirement Savings Plan 401(k) with options for both Roth and Traditional Contributions
• Tuition-Free programs for undergraduate and graduate degrees
• Generous Parental Leave Program
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP) with opportunity for discounted stock at a 15% discount

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees