Summer 2026 Graduate Intern, Affiliate Support and Nationwide Initiatives -Program and Strategy
About The Position
The ACLU seeks a Graduate Intern for their Affiliate Support and Nationwide Initiatives Department's (ASNI) Internal Operations Team of the ACLU New York National office. This internship is hybrid. Qualifying applicants must currently be matriculated Graduate students and must be based in the U.S. for the entire duration of the internship. The ASNI department builds state capacity and strengthens the connections between the ACLU and its network of 54 state affiliates and their 1,500 staff members across the country. The affiliates’ work constitutes an unparalleled bulwark defending and advancing our civil liberties and civil rights. ASNI staff lead efforts to build program, build organizations, and drive resources to key battles across the country, positioning the nationwide organization for future challenges. The Program & Strategy Team within ASNI works with ACLU affiliates to strategically align our chief program drivers – advocacy, communications, and legal – to bring the full power of ACLU affiliates to reach their goals, increase connectivity between national and affiliate staff, better drive nationwide strategies, and leverage the strengths of the whole nationwide enterprise. This team works with other ASNI teams, national office partners, and affiliate leadership to build programs and attend to the institutional and cultural work that is needed to operate successfully. As our intern, you will have the opportunity to gain valuable experience in program development and project coordination in a nonprofit setting.
Requirements
- This internship is open to undergraduate (rising seniors starting Fall 2026) and graduate students.
- Experience assisting with administrative tasks in an office setting, preferably a nonprofit
- Proficiency with Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
- Strong organization skills with great attention to detail
- Ability to take initiative, think creatively, contribute innovative ideas, problem solve, work well under pressure, and take ownership of projects and assignments
- Excellent written and verbal communication and interpersonal skills
- Eager to learn and curious to ask questions, particularly about the range of disciplines that the team manages: advocacy/legislative, organizing, legal, communications, and digital work with affiliates
Nice To Haves
- Some knowledge of event planning or logistics coordination preferred
Responsibilities
- Project coordination and logistics planning assistance:
- Supporting multistate initiatives, including the Southern Collective (regional work with our 13 affiliates in the South) and the Battlegrounds Initiative (election safeguarding work)
- Supporting the experts on the team from the advocacy/legislative, organizing, legal, communications, and digital functional areas to ensure well-organized and efficient projects/programs
- Supporting the Southern Legal Internship Program
- Supporting the roll-out of guides, toolkits, playbooks, and other resources for affiliate knowledge and learning
- Support administrative tasks, such as taking notes for and assisting with the coordination of meetings related to working groups, learning communities, and other initiatives
- Draft preliminary language for deliverables, such as internal communications, summaries of meeting notes, and PowerPoint presentations for different audiences
- Support survey data collection and analysis of results
- Create and maintain resource banks regarding advocacy/legislative, organizing, legal, communications, and digital program management
- Assist in organizing virtual/hybrid workshops and convenings of ACLU affiliates
- Assist with tasks that ensure the team’s grants portfolio and budget are well-organized
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Intern
