Spring 2027 Undergraduate or Graduate Intern, Affiliate Support and Nationwide Initiatives - Program and Strategy

Location: Remote/Hybrid-New York City Department: ASNI Internal Operations

The ACLU seeks an Undergraduate or Graduate Intern for their Affiliate Support and Nationwide Initiatives Department's (ASNI) Program and Strategy Team of the ACLU New York National office. This internship is full-time and can be hybrid or remote.

Qualifying applicants must currently be matriculated graduate or undergraduate students that will be rising seniors starting Fall 2027. Applicant must be based in the U.S. for the entire duration of the internship.

The Team

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.

What You’ll Do

The intern will be responsible for

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 Southern Legal Internship Program (SLIP)

Supporting the roll-out of guides, toolkits, playbooks, and other resources for affiliate knowledge and learning

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 including, but not limited to, the following projects:

Program and Strategy Playbook

Future of Organizing Retreat

Affiliate Communications Excellence Guide

Affiliate Media Trainings

Your Day to Day

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

What You’ll Bring

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, and contribute innovative ideas to improve team or project efficiency

Problem solve, work well under pressure, and organize/take ownership of the various projects and assignments with competing priorities

Excellent written and verbal communication and interpersonal skills

Hungry 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

Some knowledge of event planning or logistics coordination preferred

Future ACLU-ers Will

Be committed to advancing the mission of the ACLU

Center and embed the principles of equity, inclusion and belonging in their work by demonstrating commitment to diversity with an approach that respects and values multiple perspectives

Be committed to work collaboratively and respectfully toward resolving obstacles and conflict

Internship Logistics

Location: Our internship program offers a limited number of remote or hybrid intern positions. This internship is remote or hybrid from our NY National office.

Time Commitment: Full-time (35hrs/week)

Internship Duration: Full-time internships span 10 consecutive weeks. This internship has a start date of: Jan. 11th or Jan. 25th, 2027

Stipend: A stipend is available for students who are lawfully authorized to work. Arrangements can be made with educational institutions for work/study or course credit.

Below are the stipend rates

$20/hr for undergraduate students or equivalent experience

$24/hr for graduate and law students or equivalent experience

This internship must be tied to the intern’s formal education program by integrated coursework or the receipt of academic credit.

Priority Application Deadline: July 12, 2026

While there is a priority deadline, our team is committed to reviewing all applications on a rolling basis until the closing of posting.

Why the ACLU

For over 100 years, the ACLU has worked to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution and laws of the United States. Whether it’s ending mass incarceration, achieving full equality for the LGBTQ+ community, establishing new privacy protections for our digital age, or preserving the right to vote or the right to have an abortion, the ACLU takes up the toughe