by LaunchProgress · February 18, 2014 11:18 AM

Empower young people to create change. Apply for a LaunchProgress Spring Internship today.

LaunchProgress is looking for one finance intern, one communications intern, and two operations intern to join our leadership team this spring. Check out the descriptions below and apply by sending your resume to info@launchprogress.org.

LaunchProgress Action Fund — Finance Internship

LaunchProgress Action Fund is a nonprofit organization that engages young progressives running for office in order to grow the base of future national leaders. LaunchProgress Action Fund works with local, state, and national allies to find youth leaders that represent our changing, diverse America—women, people of color, people from lower-income families, people who are disabled—who our political parties may not traditionally recruit or support. Through events, communications, and research-focused advocacy campaigns, we connect young progressive leaders to unique professional development resources.

LaunchProgress Action Fund is currently seeking a Finance Intern for the Spring Semester (2014). The Finance Intern will work closely with the Co-Directors and have the opportunity to develop skills in nonprofit management and development.

Position Responsibilities:

• Conduct research on innovative fundraising models
• Assist in developing and implementing new fundraising activities and initiatives
• Conduct research on fundraising and finance data
• Provide administrative support such as data management to the development team
• Perform other duties as assigned

Qualifications:

• Prior experience executing whole projects from beginning to completion
• Excellent verbal and written communications skills
• Complete tasks on time
• Highly organized with attention to detail
• Energetic, self-starter, with flexible and positive attitude
• Strong team player and ability to work cooperatively with others
• Passionate about progressive issues

The ideal intern would be a freshman, sophomore, or junior in college who is interested in advancing progressive solutions and is seeking experience in nonprofit fundraising and research. An interest in entrepreneurship and nonprofit management is a plus.

The Finance Intern will be expected to contribute 10 hours per week with flexible start and end dates. The internship will be virtual with regular videoconference meetings and conference calls. The internship is unpaid, but college credit may be available depending on the requirements of your college or university.

LaunchProgress Action Fund is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. We are strongly committed to diversity and we welcome applicants of all races, ethnicities, genders, and sexual orientations, including people who have been previously incarcerated.

To apply: Please send a current resume and a short email detailing your interest in the position and the organization to Luke Squire at info@launchprogress.org. Please include the position title in the subject of the email.

LaunchProgress Action Fund — Communications Internship

LaunchProgress Action Fund is a nonprofit organization that engages young progressives running for office in order to grow the base of future national leaders. LaunchProgress Action Fund works with local, state, and national allies to find youth leaders that represent our changing, diverse America—women, people of color, people from lower-income families, people who are disabled—who our political parties may not traditionally recruit or support. Through events, communications, and research-focused advocacy campaigns, we connect young progressive leaders to unique professional development resources.

LaunchProgress Action Fund is currently seeking a Communications Intern for the Spring Semester (2014). The Communications Intern will work closely with the Co-Directors and the Communications Director to increase the organization’s media presence.

Position Responsibilities:

• Assist Communications Director in drafting press releases
• Conduct research for upcoming press events
• Write blogs for the website
• Manage press contacts as needed
• Provide administrative support such as managing the media database
• Perform other duties as assigned

Qualifications:

• Prior experience executing whole projects from beginning to completion
• Excellent verbal and written communications skills
• Complete tasks on time
• Highly organized with attention to detail
• Energetic, self-starter, with flexible and positive attitude
• Strong team player and ability to work cooperatively with others
• Passionate about progressive issues

The ideal intern would be a freshman, sophomore, or junior in college who is interested in advancing progressive solutions and is seeking experience in nonprofit communications. An interest in entrepreneurship and nonprofit management is a plus.

The Communications Intern will be expected to contribute 10 hours per week with flexible start and end dates. The internship will be virtual with regular videoconference meetings and conference calls. The internship is unpaid, but college credit may be available depending on the requirements of your college or university.

LaunchProgress Action Fund is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. We are strongly committed to diversity and we welcome applicants of all races, ethnicities, genders, and sexual orientations, including people who have been previously incarcerated.

To apply: Please send a current resume and a short email detailing your interest in the position and the organization to Poy Winichakul at info@launchprogress.org. Please include the position title in the subject of the email.

LaunchProgress Action Fund — Operations Internship

LaunchProgress Action Fund is a nonprofit organization that engages young progressives running for office in order to grow the base of future national leaders. LaunchProgress Action Fund works with local, state, and national allies to find youth leaders that represent our changing, diverse America—women, people of color, people from lower-income families, people who are disabled—who our political parties may not traditionally recruit or support. Through events, communications, and research-focused advocacy campaigns, we connect young progressive leaders to unique professional development resources.

LaunchProgress Action Fund is currently seeking two Operations Interns for the Spring Semester (2014). The Operations Interns will work closely with the Co-Directors to conduct research, manage programs, and manage systems data.

Position Responsibilities:

• Assist Co-Directors in volunteer outreach and coordination
• Conduct research on volunteer recruitment and retention strategies
• Analyze data and help implement data-driven contact management solutions
• Provide administrative support such as data management to the operations team
• Perform other duties as assigned

Qualifications:

• Prior experience executing whole projects from beginning to completion
• Excellent verbal and written communications skills
• Complete tasks on time
• Highly organized with attention to detail
• Energetic, self-starter, with flexible and positive attitude
• Strong team player and ability to work cooperatively with others
• Passionate about progressive issues

The ideal intern would be a freshman, sophomore, or junior in college who is interested in advancing progressive solutions and is seeking experience in nonprofit management and development. An interest in entrepreneurship and nonprofit management is a plus.

Operations Interns will be expected to contribute 10 hours per week with flexible start and end dates. The internship will be virtual with regular videoconference meetings and conference calls. The internship is unpaid, but college credit may be available depending on the requirements of your college or university.

LaunchProgress Action Fund is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. We are strongly committed to diversity and we welcome applicants of all races, ethnicities, genders, and sexual orientations, including people who have been previously incarcerated.

To apply: Please send a current resume and a short email detailing your interest in the position and the organization to Poy Winichakul at info@launchprogress.org. Please include the position title in the subject of the email.

by LaunchProgress · February 14, 2014 10:12 AM

February 14th, a day to spend with your loved ones and hold them close—so you can both easily watch House of Cards Season 2 on your computer screen.

If you’re like us at LaunchProgress, you have probably been counting down the days to the new season. For those of you who haven’t, you should know the new season of House of Cards will be released on Netflix at 12:01 AM PST on Valentine’s Day. We love that show more than sharks love blood.

To celebrate this day, we’re hosting a House of Cards GIF and meme contest to show that while we love the show, that’s not the kind of democracy we’re working to achieve.

Submit your best House of Cards GIF showing good democracy gone wrong and we’ll post the winner on Monday!

What you do: Email us at info@LaunchProgress.org; Tweet @LaunchProgress, or Facebook us your favorite GIF from any season of House of Cards and we will post the winner on Monday.
When you do it: Send us your submissions until the end of the day on Sunday, February 16.
What you get: Eternal glory and LaunchProgress love as we post and credit your winning GIF online.

by Colin Koffel · January 29, 2014 11:28 AM

As part of National Journal’s The Next America series, LaunchProgress Co-Founder Poy Winichakul contributed an op-ed arguing that it’s time to support a new generation of leaders who look like America and will stand for America’s future.

We encourage young progressives—America’s most diverse, tech-savvy, solution-oriented demographic—to run for office and change the conversation from talking about problems to solving them.

A key part of that goal is finding people who can represent our changing America—women, people of color, people from lower-income families, people who are disabled. Millennials make up 30 percent of the LGBT population. Forty percent are people of color. These voices are diverse, abundant, and educated, but they are not being represented in politics.

Many lack the funds necessary to mount a big campaign. They don’t have connections to the big donors or power brokers needed to win elected office. That’s why LaunchProgress is encouraging young people to run for state and local office. There, a few thousand dollars can win a race. Savvy social-media strategy can turn out young people in every district. And little by little, these young progressives can build a new generation of leaders to run for higher office.

Read the full piece over at National Journal.

by LaunchProgress · January 29, 2014 10:45 AM

LaunchProgress Co-Founder Poy Winichakul caught up with Richard Fowler to talk about what LaunchProgress hopes to accomplish this year. Watch below:

Check it out!

by LaunchProgress · December 31, 2013 1:20 PM

2013 was awesome.

1. LaunchProgress opened its doors this fall with three events in New York, DC, and Boston. We met and talked to over 400 young progressives dedicated to moving this country forward.
   
2. While all eyes were on governor’s races, we brought it back to the local, young electeds who are really laying the groundwork for progressive change in this country.
3. Then we got to hang out on HuffPost Live with ambitious young progressive leaders…
   
   and dreamy host Marc Lamont Hill.
   
4. Oh, have you seen our video
   
   Video by Daniel Schloss
5. We did a session at RootsCamp with ANC Commissioner Rory Slatko and met the next generation of America’s leaders.
   
6. We began putting pressure on the political establishment to start investing in young people running for office.
7. And we finished the year on a Millennials Top 10 in 2013 list…right next to Beyoncé. Thank you Generation Progress!

But our 2013 shout out goes to you—our volunteers and supporters. We are so grateful for all of your help. We know LaunchProgress wouldn’t be here without you.

Thank you for an amazing start. We can’t wait for what’s next and with your help, we know we can make it a game-changing, progressive year.

Cheers! Happy New Year!

Poy, Luke, and the LaunchProgress Team

by Evan Williamson · December 09, 2013 5:11 PM

For many Millennials, coming of age in the wake of the Great Recession made them fundamentally question the definition of “the good life.” America’s youngest generation of adults faces a crossroads in its professional development: will we seek the most lucrative opportunities available to us, or will we look beyond ourselves in an effort to derive something greater from our work?

In their article in the New York Times, Emily Esfahani Smith and Jennifer Aaker identify a pattern indicating that a great number of us have made that choice: more than our forebears, we are looking for a sense of meaning in our professional lives. Not happiness or advancement, (though we prize those as well, according to Pew) we seek meaning, or an affirmation of our individual “cognitive and emotional assessment of the degree to which we feel our lives have purpose, value and impact.” Not surprising from a generation of charitable givers and lifelong volunteers.

The authors rightly point out that the search for “meaning” is subjective by definition, but also note that we have begun fulfilling our promise to search for “other-oriented” work, gravitating towards healthcare and government work. Inevitably, in a generation hungry for meaningful work, public service and elective politics will be jobs in high demand.

At the same time, as Millennials begin to leave our impression on every sector of society, we must ensure that Millennial perspective permeates political debate. As Peter Beinart of the Daily Beast recently pointed out in an insightful article, this doesn’t just mean getting younger people into office; Millennials’ formative experiences with government have changed the playing field of electoral politics and left Millennials far more progressive than preceding generations. Millennial change will be progressive change, and Millennial leadership has to be progressive leadership.

Millennials stand ready to provide a fresh take on the way we confront common challenges. We need to foster the ethic of service identified by Emily Esfahani Smith and Jennifer Aaker, and help eager new progressives into elective office.

LaunchProgress is committed to opening the door for this idealist generation, and recognizes that Millennials will need to establish pathways to leadership through state and local office so that tomorrow’s leaders can begin serving today. Are you ready to join them?

We have a generation that stands ready to commit itself to a new ethic of public service. Join LaunchProgress and help the Millennial generation fulfill its promise.

by LaunchProgress · November 27, 2013 5:14 PM

In case you missed it, catch Co-Founder Poy Winichakul on Huffington Post Live with candidate for Michigan State Representative Jon Hoadley and Elizabeth City Council-Elect Montravias King discussing why the country needs more young progressives running for office here.

by Evan Williamson · November 25, 2013 2:59 PM

I don’t want to put labels on the Millennial generation. With due respect to Generation X, who had plenty of stereotypes and buzzwords attached to them during their youth and coming of age, the evolution of the Millennial generation has come under the microscope more times than any of us care to count.

A plethora of articles have come out, some thoughtful, many condescending profiling the 90 million Americans born, as I was, between 1981 and 2000. Many chart the course of our generation, from home, to school, then right back home with debt, a degree, and no job.

Very few (with some exceptions) note how difficult it is to tease out what makes a generation different, or what shared experiences might shape the mentalities discussed. Certainly, to explain why a generation leans one way or another, we have to isolate factors that stretch across races and languages, and apply to all genders. This is especially true for the most diverse generation in American history.

There are experiences—like growing up during the tech revolution, coming of age in the wake of 9/11 and watching friends and classmates ship out to fight the two wars that followed, or entering the job market in the shadow of the Great Recession—that cut across the cleavages that define Millennial demographics. Bearing a disproportionately high amount of student debt may also fit the bill for what is projected to be the most educated generation in American history.

These shared formative experiences have, if polls are to be believed, led Millennials to adopt radically different attitudes than older generations. From Millennials’ well-documented embrace of equality and civil liberties, to our deep optimism about the future, this is a generation with its own very distinct opinions and ideas.

Gridlock, however, has alienated potential Millennial voters from participating in the public sphere. For the politically minded, it’s no surprise that 55% of Millennials feel that legislators don’t share their priorities while almost half feel that today’s politics can’t handle today’s problems.

This leads many to conclude that Millennials are simply jaded, or unreachable, or self-absorbed. I disagree. I believe that this disaffection will continue until this generation establishes its voice among our national leadership.

Cultivating that representation will take work, and that is why I joined Launch Progress. Together, we can show this generation that not only can their views find a voice in the public debate, but that any one of them can be that voice.

I joined LaunchProgress so that Millennials who want a voice can be a voice, so that the largest generation in American history can contribute meaningfully to the debate over how our shared future forms.

Evan Williamson is a native Illinoisan living and working in Washington, DC.

by Pichaya Winichakul · November 21, 2013 10:25 AM

Originally published in Huffington Post.

Millennials did it again — we were instrumental in some of 2013’s biggest elections. Whether it was Terry McAuliffe’s success in scaring and sharing “the crazy stuff Ken Cucchinelli said,” Bill de Blasio’s ability to turn out Brooklyn hipsters, or Chris Christie’s straight talk, young voters turned out in droves. Politicians love us — or if they don’t, they at least fake it until they make it. I suppose this means young people are gaining ground.

But where no one was watching, young people had even bigger wins this year — as candidates.

P.G. Sittenfeld, Cincinnati’s youngest city council member, won re-election in his race this month. He received 10,000 more votes than any other winning council candidate. Thirty-year-old Antonio Reynoso, a born and bred Brooklynite, won a New York City council seat by defeating the old Democratic Party machine. Boone, North Carolina, elected community organizer Andy Ball, who at age 30 will be the city’s youngest mayor. Young Americans across the country, representing the latest Millennial trend to bring bold leadership to government, ran and won this year.

Young people are running for office everywhere. They’re not waiting for older candidates to get Twitter-trained, and they’re not waiting for political parties to craft the perfect messaging for young voters. This smart, connected, solutions-oriented generation is jumping into politics head first and running for office on the local, statewide, and national issues they care about. Take for instance, Montravias King, a senior at Elizabeth City State University. A local GOP chairman challenged King’s candidacy for city council, claiming he wasn’t able to run for office because he lived in a dorm. King fought back, earned his right to run, and won his council seat in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, campaigning against the state’s controversial voter ID law.

Young people in the past tended to have smaller networks, limited public speaking experience, and were less politically engaged. But this generation of young people can easily create large networks through social media and connect to hundreds of leadership training programs conducted by now-seasoned campaign staff and youth engagement experts. Maybe most importantly, we are self-motivated to run for office. Millennials see an opportunity and we seize it. We see a problem and we solve it. We see a need and we fill it.

The 2008 presidential election brought the youth vote into the mainstream. Five years later, we are seeing a marked shift — another unique opportunity — young electeds. If political parties want to keep young voters engaged, if progressives and tea partiers want to create lasting change, they should follow the lead of this year’s young elected officials and run young candidates. They represent real wins for young people.

by Pichaya Winichakul · November 18, 2013 9:35 PM

It started with a familiar scene: two good friends sitting around a kitchen table drinking a couple of beers.

In this story, these two good friends—Luke and I—grew up using email before we learned our multiplication tables. We have always been hyper-connected to our peers through instant messaging, texting, Myspace, Facebook, Twitter—the world has always been infinite and at our fingertips. But it’s also the story of two friends who came into political awareness in the age of President George W. Bush and came into political maturity in the age of President Obama. We are two friends who entered the workforce during one of the country’s worst recessions, which brought on an economic crisis but also opened up deep cultural wounds, dividing us by race, class, gender, sexuality, and region.

This is a familiar story of any two young Americans today. We are empowered by technology, hardened by the whiplash of political extremes, and moved by the struggles and perseverance of our neighbors, our peers, our families.

But the LaunchProgress story goes on with an opportunity.

First, we saw a problem: Young people were asked to participate in the political process and after we contributed energy and ideas, we were asked to wait in line—to be patient. Young progressives, once energized by politics, became jaded by political gridlock and beaten by an unrelenting economic recession.

Then we saw a solution: Re-engage young progressives by asking them to run for office. Encourage them to contribute their fresh perspective and new ideas the country desperately needs. Help them put their energy toward representing people how they want to be represented.

And there was the opportunity: We spent months talking to friends, family, past and future candidates, young activists, community members, academics, researchers, lawyers. After six months of research we believed it could be done, it should be done, and if no one else was going to do it, we would step up to engage, encourage, and help young progressives get elected to their first state or local office.

LaunchProgress is in its infancy. We’re still building the structures. We’re still drafting the documents. We’re still making mistakes and learning lessons. But the original problem we saw persists, the solution is still possible, and the opportunity to engage young Americans and build the bench for the next generation of national progressive leaders is real.

The LaunchProgress story is a familiar one. There is no secrecy nor espionage nor million-dollar adventure. It’s a story of opportunity. It’s a story of two friends who, like many young Americans, are committed to our peers, our families, and to public service. And it’s a story that’s still being crafted. Luke and I started LaunchProgress, but it will be up to our supporters and volunteers to help shape it, to energize it, to push it forward. Because that’s what progress is—and we are really looking forward to it.

Pichaya Poy Winichakul is a Co-Founder and Co-Director of LaunchProgress. She is proud of her progressive Wisconsin roots and is an equally proud resident of Brooklyn, New York.