This week's Democracy Notes
Hi y’all!
First things first, our very own Jake Gómez was named one of sixteen 2026-2027 Luce Scholars by the Henry Luce Foundation! Huge, huge congratulations!!
(And since he’ll be headed to Asia in a few months, we’ll be sharing a job posting shortly…keep an eye out!)
Real quick: if you happen to be free 2-2:30pm ET today (!), come to our “A tale of two listening tours” event to hear what’s happening across the democracy space!
And a quick q:
Democracy Notes 3/12
What’s happening in philanthropy:
($$$)
Congratulations to Omidyar Network’s new CEO, Michele L. Jawando!
She succeeds Mike Kubzansky who served in the CEO role for over eight years.
LinkedIn post from Michele here.
Carnegie Corporation of New York announced $44M in new grants on Tuesday. Some democracy-relevant ones:
$500K (24 months) - ACLU Foundation for its free speech initiative
$500K (24 months) - Aspen Institute’s Weave: The Social Fabric Project
$750K (24 months) - The Carter Center’s local election observation networks
$500K (24 months) - Citizen University’s Live Like a Citizen program
$1.5M (24 months) - Civic News Company for Chalkbeat and Votebeat
$500K (24 months) - Edward M. Kennedy Institute’s Senate Immersion Module
$300K (24 months) - Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law’s election protection hotline
$1M (24 months) - Urban Libraries Council’s new Civic Labs for Youth
The Block and Build Funder Coalition “has 475 participants who represent over 200 organizations and a collective funding capacity of over $6 billion annually”
…and I only learned about it yesterday! (Thanks to this piece in Inside Philanthropy.)
Started a year and a half ago, the funder coalition is “committed to resisting authoritarianism, defending movements for justice and safeguarding civil liberties.”
Are you a local news provider? Do you serve a community in the rural Midwest, Tribal lands, or the Southwest border?
Apply for a $20K grant to map your community’s information needs through Listening Post Collective!
The deadline is this Sunday, March 15th!
What to read:
(The big news)
How can funders repair their relationship with rural America? How should they invest in local civic life?
Savannah Barrett, Exchange Director of Art of the Rural, wrote a great piece in The Chronicle of Philanthropy on just that.
The Multiracial Democracy Project at GW Law (Spencer Overton’s shop) has launched a new Emerging Technologies Initiative under Dr. Dhanaraj Thakur!
As many of you know, I’m a BIG nerd for field infrastructure.
I’m excited to dig into a new report from Media Impact Funders by Elizabeth Hansen Sharpiro.
Leveraging the 559 applications to Press Forward’s nationwide local news infrastructure open call, the report looks at infrastructure gaps across the local news field.
What’s the difference between nonprofits that thrive and ones that falter? “Learning cultures” (instead of “outcomes cultures”), writes Third Plateau’s Jonathan Kaufman in Nonprofit Quarterly.
The classifieds:
(Things you shared!)
The classifieds are back! If you’d like us to include something, our pricing is here.
Nifty conference alert!! Join the University of California’s National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement for their eighth-annual #SpeechMatters conference!
It’s on April 8th from 11:30am-3pm ET (virtual). The agenda is here!
This year’s gathering, “Preserving the Pillars of Free Expression,” will feature legal and academic experts, journalists, artists, and activists.
Where to work:
(Jobs, jobs, jobs!)
UC National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement Fellowship (non-residential) — $15K
Fellows (all backgrounds welcome) complete a project around expression and democratic participation on college campuses over 18 months.
Applications due 3/30! View past fellows’ projects here!
Verified Voting Senior Policy Associate — remote, $85K-$90K
Center for Tech and Civic Life Senior Program Manager — remote, $89K-$92K
Common Ground USA Grants and Fundraising Manager — remote, $72K-$90K
Whistleblower Aid Administrative Assistant — DC, $55K-$70K
The Carter Center Program Associate, Democracy Program — Atlanta, $58K
Rutgers Democracy Lab:
Senior Program Coordinator — New Brunswick, NJ, $68K-$80K
Public Relations Assistant — New Brunswick, NJ, $53K-$65K
Protect Democracy:
Engineering Manager (Tech & Democracy) — remote, $170K-$193K
Editorial Specialist — remote, $84K-$94K
Issue One Legislative Manager-Strategic Partnerships — DC, $85K-$95K
Future Caucus Director, Finance — DC, $88K-$102K
Campaign Legal Center Paralegal — DC, $65K-$88K
^ These orgs really want to reach great candidates in the Democracy Notes community! If you’d like to promote a role with us, our options are here!
Two consulting gigs with the Samuel S. Fels Fund!
Evaluation & Learning Partner — $95K
Deep learning and sense-making around their movement-building work in Philadelphia.
Communications & Storytelling Partner — $80K
Amplify and humanize Philly's grassroots movements in this moment of churn and change.
Campus Compact Project Manager, Member Virtual Hub (18 months, full-time) — remote, $75K
States United Democracy Center Research Intern (Summer 2026) — remote, $17/hr
Civics Learning Project Director of Education — OR, $90K-$105K
The Miami Foundation Vice President of Community Investments — Miami, $150K-$190K
Keep Our Republic Development Advisor — remote, $10K/month
Partnership for Public Service Associate, Public Policy & Stakeholder Engagement — DC, $53K-$55K
Brennan Center for Justice Innovation Fellow, Brennan Center Ventures — NYC, $52-$60/hr
Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Vice President of Advancement & Engagement — Chicago, $115K-$125K
James Madison University:
Center for Civic Engagement Communications Director (part-time) — Harrisonburg, VA, $28-$30/hr
Associate Director – Civic Discourse Initiatives — Harrisonburg, VA, no $ info
Transitions, transitions:
(Where the movers are moving and the shakers are shaking)
Kirami Bah returns to New Heights Communications as a Communications Manager!
Christine Fernando is now Communications & Creative Coordinator at National Issues Forums!
Rachel Bostic is now Organizing Director at ACLU of North Carolina!
Roy Speckhardt is now Chief Development Officer at VoteRiders!
Jessica Baylor is now Senior Director, Strategic Partnerships at American Exchange Project!
Elisabeth Smith is now Deputy Director, Civil Rights Hub at Public Rights Project!
Meg Huber is now Program Coordinator on the Democracy Team at Interfaith America!
Submit your job transitions (or promotions!) here.
See you soon,
Gabe