Colorado Young Advocates Program – Fall 2023
Young Invincibles (“YI”) is accepting applications for our Fall 2023 Young Advocates program. The Young Advocates program is a unique, paid leadership development program that trains young adults ages 18-34 to strengthen their voices across our issue areas while developing skills and gaining experience in the core functions of advocacy and policy work. Advocates learn about building power among young adults to affect positive change in their communities through on-the-ground organizing, such as planning state and local events to educate and facilitate discussions on pressing issues affecting young people.
Advocates will work closely with our YI Rocky Mountain team to engage their communities around health care initiatives (including behavioral health), affordable higher education and expanding economic opportunity for young Coloradans. In addition to working in small teams to create and implement meaningful campaigns, participants will work closely with our policy and research teams to develop and propose solutions, and will also work with our communications team to amplify stories and messages. Advocates will also receive trainings and hands-on experience in a variety of advocacy tools, and connect with local partners and campaigns working on the issues they care about.
This is a great opportunity to develop skills and experience in the core functions of advocacy and public policy work. We are seeking applicants who have a passion for YI’s mission and who are interested in building power among young adults to effect positive change.
If you are a young adult who lives in Colorado and you’re interested in becoming more civically engaged, we invite you to apply here. The application deadline is Sunday, July 2 at 11:59pm M.T.
Program Overview
The program start date will be Friday, September 8. Advocates will be required to attend in-person onboarding sessions for the program on Friday, September 15 and Saturday September 16 in downtown Denver. Advocates will meet virtually via Zoom the majority of Fridays from 9:00AM to 1:00PM through December 8. Please see schedule here.
At the weekly meetings, advocates will receive training on community organizing, policy advocacy, and strategic communications skills. In addition, each participant will help create and execute campaign plans. Program meeting time will be split fairly even between trainings and project work.
As an advocate, you will have accomplished the following by the end of the program:
- Helped develop 2024 Colorado Policy Agenda
- Conducted policy research + develop policy campaign plans in support of potential bills advancing CO young people in higher education, healthcare access, racial equity, and workforce development
- Established working relationships with decision makers, stakeholders, and organizational partners
- Gained community outreach and organizing skills - particularly with (vulnerable) Colorado young adults through a variety of different projects such at Get out the Vote work
- Gained valuable event-planning and grassroots organizing experience
- Participated in leadership development trainings to better understand and equip you to lead community change
Compensation
Young Advocates will be paid a rate of $17.50 per hour for approximately 64 hours of training and work on projects over the course of the four month program. Each advocate may have the opportunity to reinterview for the 2024 Spring Program (January-May), an opportunity to engage with the Colorado legislative session.
Qualifications
- Must show willingness and ability to work independently and as a member of a team
- Must have the ability to work in a professional environment and show maturity in the workplace
- Must actively participate in the community
- Must be creative, have initiative and able to work in a fast paced environment
- A college degree or current college enrollment are not required to participate
Application
To apply to be a Young Advocate, click here. The application takes about 20 minutes to complete. The deadline to apply is Sunday, July 2 at 11:59pm M.T. For further information, contact Cameron DeTello at cameron.detello@younginvincibles.org.
About Young Invincibles
Young Invincibles is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization working to engage young adults ages 18 to 34 in the political process and expand economic opportunity for our generation. YI has
quickly grown into a leading voice for young people on the broader spectrum of economic justice, with a focus in the issue areas of health care, higher education, and economic security. We conduct policy research, conduct outreach, frequent the Capitol to meet with legislators and rally for their support, and host training sessions on advocacy. You’ll get a chance to meet with partner organizations, work alongside policy experts both at YI and at our partner organizations, and hopefully find the next step in your career after YI. We have offices in D.C., CO, CA, TX, IL, and NY.
Young Invincibles is an equal employment opportunity employer and strongly encourages diverse candidates to apply. YI does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religious creed, sex (including pregnancy), gender, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, age, medical condition including genetic characteristics, mental or physical disability, veteran status, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, (including transgender status), weight, height, linguistic characteristics (such as accent and limited English proficiency, where not substantially job-related), citizenship status, or any other basis prohibited by law.
