(Community Matters)
In 2011, Organizing for America is launching the Summer Organizer Program that allows participants to get full time, hands-on experience and training in all facets of community organizing (including new media tools and strategies, managing data and targeting, running political events, building neighborhood volunteer teams, etc). OFA is in the midst of an ambitious recruitment effort and will be bringing on a large number of participants with an eye towards training a new generation of organizers for the future. This effort includes an early launch of the program to make it more competitive with other internship programs, a strategically-focused recruitment effort that leverages online and offline resources (emphasizing development of local talent in their own communities), and a fully developed curriculum for the program.
The goals of the program include:
· Training the next generation of organizers and building a strong list of talented organizers across the country
· Investment in development of local organizing talent
· Developing organizers in diverse communities
The Summer Organizer Program’s application deadline is April 18th. The program will begin with a mandatory two day orientation on June 4th and will run through August 6th (though several participants will stay on throughout the month of August). The positions are unpaid, and the hourly requirement is between 20 and 40 hours a week (schedules will be worked out individually between the SO applicants who are accepted with the OFA staffers they will be working with).
In order to be accepted, applicants will have to fill out the application contained in this link: http://my.barackobama.com/Summer-Organizer-2011. OFA state staff will be interviewing applicants throughout the months of March and April, and applicants will be accepted on a rolling basis. There has already been an overwhelming response so far, so applying sooner is better than applying later.
Community Matters 