Community Engagement And Education Intern

ABOUT THE CAMPAIGN FINANCE BOARD

The Campaign Finance Board is a nonpartisan, independent city agency that empowers New Yorkers to have a greater impact on their elections. Our mission is to make local democracy more open, transparent, and equitable by removing barriers to participation.

We make it easier for New Yorkers to vote, meaningfully support candidates for city office, and run for office themselves. NYC Votes, our voter engagement initiative, meets people where they are to share trustworthy election information and help New Yorkers make a plan to vote. We publish the citywide Voter Guide, which delivers information about candidates directly to voters’ doors. Our public matching funds program ensures small contributions can make a big difference, allowing regular people to run for office by relying on the support of other regular people, not just wealthy donors and special interests. And we lift the veil on how candidates raise and spend money, increasing transparency and accountability in local government.

We believe that when every New Yorker is empowered to participate meaningfully in elections, candidates will better reflect the communities they serve, elected leaders will be more accountable to the public, and New Yorkers will have a democracy they can truly trust.

ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT

NYC Votes is an initiative of the New York City Campaign Finance Board (CFB), a nonpartisan, independent agency, that aims to inform New Yorkers about elections and boost their civic participation in the democratic process. The NYC Votes Partnership and Outreach team works to build partnerships across the city to disseminate information and conduct direct to voter outreach.

JOB DESCRIPTION

In the 2021 NYC Mayoral Election, less than 25% of New Yorkers across the City turned out to vote. NYC Votes seeks to increase civic participation among New Yorkers through Community Engagement and Education efforts, especially for the following priority audiences: voters under 30, voters with disabilities, voters impacted by the criminal legal system, and voters who speak languages other than English.

We’re seeking a team of Community Education and Engagement Interns to report to staff on the Partnerships and Outreach Unit. This role will play a critical role in enhancing our civic engagement education and empowerment training for youth across New York City, with a focus on young people ages 14 to 24 years old; voters with disabilities; voters impacted by the criminal legal system; and voters who speak languages other than English. The Community Engagement and Education interns will work closely with community-based organizations (CBOs), academic institutions, libraries, schools, and other youth-centered groups to deliver civic education and training opportunities.

The roles will also support the Partnerships and Outreach team in building and maintaining strong internal systems to organize and track partnership development.

The Community Engagement and Education interns will report to one of the following staff members: Youth Programs Manager; Senior Coordinator – Systems Impacted Voters; or Senior Coordinator – Accessibility, on the Partnerships and Outreach team. Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

- Supporting the team’s efforts to build relationships with key stakeholders, such as City-agencies, CBOs, schools, and college campuses to increase voter turnout. The Community Engagement and Education interns will be expected to travel independently to deliver NYC Votes civic engagement curriculum to priority audiences.

- Understanding, tracking, and meeting community needs through the provision of resources and materials, education delivery, event execution, among other engagement and education approaches.

We are looking for someone energized about on-the-ground community engagement with strong project management and organizational skills. We seek to work with someone passionate about making the voting process inclusive for young New Yorkers. Ideally, this candidate is aware or interested in deepening their understanding of how racism, ableism, classism or other oppressions specifically impact New Yorkers and show up in the voting process.

ESSENTIAL KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, ABILITIES & OTHER BEHAVIORS (KSAOs)

We're seeking individuals eager to make an impact, even if they don't tick every box on our job description. We believe in the power of diverse perspectives and the unique blend of lived experiences, non-traditional education pathways, practical know-how, and a variety of skills and abilities that each candidate brings to the table. If you're ready to learn and grow with us, we encourage you to apply and be part of our dynamic team.

KNOWLEDGE

- Knowledge or experience in a related field such as: Political Science, Community Organizing, English, Journalism, Ethnic or Cultural Studies, Social Work, Public Administration, etc.

- Understanding or experience with New York City systems such as libraries, public schools, criminal legal system, etc.

- Interest in democracy, politics, elections, community organizing, and/or social justice

- Knowledge or experience working with one or more of the following priority communities: high school/college students, New Yorkers with disabilities, or New Yorkers impacted by the criminal punishment system

SKILLS

- Strong organizational skills and attention to detail

- Proficient with Microsoft Suite

- Strong written and oral communication skills

ABILITIES

- Willingness to ask questions and learn on the job

- Can engage in public speaking and community education

- Can travel independently to events across New York City, often outside of regular work hours. This is necessary to participate in community events reaching out priority neighborhoods. Car service is provided by the office in certain circumstances.

- Experience working with one or more of the following priority communities: high school/college students, New Yorkers with disabilities, or New Yorkers impacted by the criminal legal system

Other

- We are seeking a candidate that is curious about our work and driven to learn. Candidates should have a strong interest in politics, democracy, social justice, or community organizing. Prior experience working on political campaigns is not required.

- Members of our team are committed to modeling the values of collaboration and actively seek to disrupt harmful patterns in government service. The Partnerships and Outreach team believes in the redistribution of power and resources to community members who are most impacted by the systemic issue of low-voter turnout.

- We encourage anyone who cares about New Yorkers and shares these values to apply, regardless of your experience level. We especially encourage applicants who have direct life experience navigating these systems to apply.

COLLEGE AIDE (ALL CITY DEPTS) - 10209

Minimum Qualifications

For Assignment Level I:
Matriculation at an accredited college or graduate school. Employment is conditioned upon continuance as a student in a college or graduate school.
For Assignment Level II (Information Technology):
Matriculation at an accredited college or graduate school. Employment is conditioned upon continuance as a student in a college or graduate school with a specific course of study in information technology, computer science, management information systems, data processing, or closely related field, including or supplemented by 9 semester credits in an acceptable course of study.
For Assignment Level III (Information Technology Fellow):
Matriculation at an accredited college or graduate school. Employment is conditioned upon continuance as a student in a college or graduate school with a specific course of study in information technology, computer science, management information systems, data processing, or other area relevant to the information technology project(s) assigned, including or supplemented by 9 semester credits in an acceptable course of study. Appointments to this Assignment Level will be made by the Technology Steering Committee through the Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications.

SPECIAL NOTE
Maximum tenure for all Assignment Levels in the title of College Aide is 6 years. No student shall be employed more than half-time in any week in which classes in which the student is enrolled are in session. Students may be employed full-time during their vacation periods.

Preferred Skills

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS 1-2 years of relevant experience Experience working in direct community engagement, bonus if with underrepresented community members Volunteer work on campaigns or in other community-based settings such as schools, on-campus organizing, food pantries, libraries, or places of worship for example.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness

As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs. For more information, please visit the U.S. Department of Education’s website at https://studentaid.gov/pslf/.

Residency Requirement

New York City residency is generally required within 90 days of appointment. However, City Employees in certain titles who have worked for the City for 2 continuous years may also be eligible to reside in Nassau, Suffolk, Putnam, Westchester, Rockland, or Orange County. To determine if the residency requirement applies to you, please discuss with the agency representative at the time of interview.

Additional Information

The City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, gender identity, or pregnancy.