Attention Community Leaders and ICIRR Partners!

Do you know any young leaders in Aurora, Joliet, Naperville, Elgin, Lombard, Round Lake or Highland Park (or the surrounding areas)? ICIRR is looking to immediately hire talented leaders to mobilize their community & Get Out The Vote with our New Americans Democracy Project. 5 of our young Fellows have gone on to be Executive Directors of their own community organizations within years of their fellowship. Others have gone into successful careers in politics, immigrant rights, business, and community organizing.


Please note that Fellows cannot be taking classes during the Fellowship, and must have full-time access to a car.

Paid Fellowships in Community Organizing and Civic Engagement in Immigrant Communities

*** To apply, please complete the online application (http://icirr.org/nadpfellowship) and email your resume to Abdelnasser Rashid at arashid@icirr.org.***

The Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR) announces the New Americans Democracy Project, a four-month fellowship program for young people who are interested in working hard while exploring a career in social justice and electoral/political work, receiving quality training, and contributing to the participation of new citizens in the American democratic process.


The program will run from June 25 to November 9, 2012, and will pay $400 per week (an educational stipend of $350 per week, plus $50 per week reimbursement for phone and mileage). Participants will receive training in the skills of community organizing, non-partisan voter registration and "Get Out The Vote" (GOTV) efforts from the staff, members and allies of ICIRR. These allies include community-based organizations with decades of experience in community and direct-action organizing as well as national groups like Wellstone Action and the Center for Community Change, both national leaders in electoral organizing and training. Furthermore, ICIRR will provide training on immigration issues and working with immigrant communities.

For more on this opportunity, click "read more"!

Fellows will initially receive 4 days of paid training, supplemented with trainings throughout the length of the fellowship. Fellows will be placed with allied organizations in immigrant communities around the metro-Chicago area. ICIRR staff as well as a mentor from the Fellow's host organization will provide day-to-day supervision. Fellows will work with their placement organizations to develop a local volunteer recruitment strategy and carry out intensive voter registration campaigns, focusing on new citizens in immigrant communities. In the weeks leading up to the November 2012 elections, fellows will work with these volunteers to conduct GOTV activities. All work will be non-partisan (not supporting a particular candidate or party), and will be carried under non-profit 501(C)(3) guidelines.

We are looking for applicants who are willing to work hard and are passionate about social justice and democratic participation. Previous experience is not required, but we anticipate that successful candidates will have been active in their communities on issues that matter to them. Because fellows will be working with community volunteers and conducting extensive outreach, this will be more than a 9-5 job, and will require commitment and flexibility.

 It will be essential to have a full-time use of a car. We will pay mileage and specific job-related expenses. Applicants who speak languages of targeted immigrant communities are especially encouraged to apply: Spanish, Arabic, Korean, Polish, Hindi, Urdu, Mandarin, Cantonese, Tagalog, etc. Because of the rapid growth of immigrant populations beyond the city of Chicago, placements will be in Chicago as well as in some or all of the following locations: Waukegan, Wheeling, Glenview, Skokie, Schaumburg, Des Plaines, Hanover Park, Elgin, Carpentersville, Aurora, West Chicago, DuPage County, Joliet, Melrose Park, and Bridgeview. 

We anticipate that several fellows will be hired into full-time jobs as a result of their fellowship experience. In 2006, 2008 and 2010 a significant majority of fellows attained full-time jobs in community organizing and social justice organizations, while the rest returned to post-secondary education. At the end of the fellowship, we will work with all fellows who are interested in obtaining work in the field to provide assistance in applying for jobs, including career counseling, resume review, networking, and providing references.