Arts Action Fund Intern

Arts Action Fund Intern

Reports to:         AAF Consultant                                 

Team:                 Arts Action Fund 

FLSA Status:      Hourly, Non-Exempt                            

Employment Type:  Student/Intern  

Session:              Summer                                                         

Location:            In-Person Hybrid or Fully Remote

Pay Rate:            Hourly based on DC minimum living wage $17.95 per hour until June 30, 2026. Increased to $18.40 per hour effective July 1, 2026. This internship is intended for educational benefit, and we support receiving school credit for participation.

How to Apply:   Click here to apply.

Application Deadline: The application portal will close at 3:00 pm ET March 31st

Who We Are

Americans for the Arts (AFTA) strengthens the arts from the ground up – supporting advocacy that empowers communities, develops arts leadership, and produces field-informed research. We shape national arts policy to reflect the realities and aspirations of artists, organizations, businesses, and communities nationwide. We champion the arts as a unifying and essential force in American life.

About the Arts Action Fund Team

The Americans for the Arts Action Fund is a 501c4 nonprofit membership organization subsidiary of AFTA, which dedicates 100% of its time, resources, and grassroots engagement to ensuring arts-friendly policies are adopted at the federal level. The overarching goal of the Arts Action Fund team is to strengthen bipartisan support for the arts, expand grassroots civic participation, and mobilize a national network of informed arts advocates and voters

The Arts Action Fund team mobilizes grassroots advocates to advance pro-arts public policy and civic engagement nationwide. The team oversees membership growth and grassroots advocacy programming, ArtsVote voter education initiatives and federal policy education. While operating independently, the team works closely with the Government Affairs, Research, and Communications teams at Americans for the Arts to align legislative strategy, policy analysis, and public messaging.

The Arts Action Fund team is a two-person team led by its executive director and supported by a long-term managing consultant. We are ready to support an intern who has a desire to learn about and support membership engagement, advocacy programming, and civic participation initiatives during a critical midterm election cycle.

About the Position

The Arts Action Fund Intern plays a critical role in supporting the organization’s grassroots advocacy, membership engagement and updates, and Get-Out-The-Vote (GOTV) education efforts. This position assists with drafting advocacy communications, conducting policy research, supporting ArtsVote initiatives, tracking engagement metrics, and contributing to program development and virtual events. 

The intern will be exposed to the intersection of nonprofit leadership, federal policy education, and political engagement within a 501c4 advocacy organization. This internship expands the capacity of the team, working closely with both members of the Arts Action Fund team and collaborates across teams at Americans for the Arts, to gain meaningful exposure to nonprofit advocacy, electoral engagement, and national arts policy strategy. 

Participation in this program provides the opportunity to attend our annual conference (AFTACON June 2nd – 5th) and work across teams to learn more about the arts and culture field and support advocacy and policy related initiatives. This internship encourages the exploration of the local cultural institutions in their city, offering a flexible schedule with hours that might fluctuate above and below our standard 37.50-hour work week.

The desired outcome of this internship is to have greater insight into national arts advocacy strategy, grassroots mobilization, and GOTV engagement in a federal midterm cycle.

Key Responsibilities

Political Engagement Exposure

• Support preparation of materials related to candidate surveys and congressional voting records and midterm election planning.

ArtsVote & Civic Engagement Initiatives

• Support development of ArtsVote voter education materials and election cycle engagement strategies.
• Assist in research and preparation of resources tied to the Arts Policy Vote and voter mobilization efforts. 
• Contribute to planning and execution of virtual civic engagement programs and voter education webinars. 

Membership & Grassroots Engagement

• Assist in engaging and growing the Arts Action Fund’s national membership network. 
• Make updates to membership information in the Salesforce database.  
• Support membership communications, renewal outreach, and engagement strategies. 
• Help track member participation in advocacy alerts, policy votes, and ArtsVote activities. 

Policy Education & Advocacy Communications

• Assist with maintaining the Breaking News Timeline and summarizing federal actions impacting the arts. 
• Conduct research to support programming and rapid-response advocacy efforts. 
• Support planning and execution of webinars, briefings, and advocacy activations. 
• Participate in cross-departmental meetings with Americans for the Arts to understand alignment between c3 and c4 strategies. 
• Contribute to strategic projects tied to membership growth and the 2026 midterm election cycle. 

Experience and Skills That Matter Most

Candidates are encouraged to apply, even if they do not possess all the experience and skills listed: 

• A commitment to advancing the Arts Action Fund mission, with a commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility and a passion for arts, public policy, and non-profit advocacy.
• A strong interest in public policy, elections, civic engagement, or nonprofit advocacy, particularly as they relate to arts and culture.
• Strong writing, proofreading, and research skills, with the ability to translate complex policy information into clear, accessible language. 
• Experience or interest in GOTV campaigns, advocacy initiatives, grassroots organizing, or voter engagement efforts. 
• Comfort working with digital tools and platforms, including Canva and Microsoft Office (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and major social media platforms; familiarity with CRM systems, email marketing tools, or website management is a plus. 
• Ability to manage multiple projects, meet deadlines, and work both independently and collaboratively in a fast-paced environment. 
• Strong interpersonal skills and a customer-service mindset that ensure all feel valued and respected. 
• A desire to gain firsthand experience in national arts advocacy, federal policy education, and electoral engagement during a midterm election cycle

More About the Internship

Eligibility:

• Current undergraduate or graduate student, or recent college graduate, in fields such as public policy, political science, communications, arts administration, nonprofit management, or related disciplines.  
• Must be eligible to work in and reside within the United States.
• Able to work between 9:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. ET, working an average of 37.50 hours a week, for the duration of the 12-weeks program.
• Be able to attend in-person the AFTACON annual conference in Albuquerque, NM, June 2 – 5th. Travel and lodging paid for by AFTA.

Program Duration:          

• The program is scheduled to run for a 12-week period. We anticipate the program to begin the second half of May and conclude mid-August. 
• Depending on the needs of the team and intern there is the potential for your program to start before June 1st and end before or after August 31st, based on start date.

Work hours and office:

• We have a 7.50-hour day, for a total of 37.50-hour work week. However, there is flexibility based on personal need.
• Our core business hours are 10:00 am to 4:00 pm ET, Monday through Friday.
• In person dress code is business casual.