Empowering Our Youth to Strengthen Our Democracy
2022 No. 11
Greetings!
The summer session is about to begin! We are absolutely thrilled to welcome 32 political organizer interns and eight team managers to the fifth session of Students for Justice. We will give you a sense of who our political organizers are next month, but for now we want to take a moment to appreciate our team managers, who are star interns from a previous session who have been promoted into a management role. What they are taking on is definitely not easy, but they will learn a LOT this summer.

Each team manager leads a team of four political organizers in the process of creating social media posts designed to encourage young people in our target states (NC, GA, and FL) to register and vote. They facilitate meetings, make sure that everyone is completing assignments, provide advice and support, and deal with issues of absenteeism when necessary. 

To learn the skills necessary to manage peers, these team managers participate in a leadership skills workshop run by two remarkable volunteers: Abby Jennis, who most recently served as Associate General Counsel of the City University of New York, and Phil Meeks, who recently retired from his role as Executive Vice President and President of Spectrum Business Enterprise at Charter Communications. The team managers will meet with Abby and Phil weekly in a group to discuss the challenges of leadership, including how to run an effective meeting and how to deal with struggling team members. They will also each met regularly with either Abby or Phil for one-on-one coaching.  
Meet our Summer Team Managers!
To introduce you to the summer Team Managers, we asked them a few questions. Continue reading to meet them!
What are your career goals?
Kylah Loftin
Recent Grad, Criminal Justice and Biology, NC A&T
“I plan to go to law school and become an attorney. I want to help exonerate those who have been wrongfully convicted. I am a part of SFJ because I believe that it is important to exercise our rights and stand for ourselves. I want to empower, motivate, and encourage people in underrepresented communities to get out and vote.”
Angel Lee
Junior, Liberal Studies Pre-law , NC A&T
“As of right now, I am looking to obtain a law degree and concentrate on environmental or civil law. My favorite thing about SFJ is the knowledge and resources I gain from my mentor, peers, the directors, and the experience in its entirety. As a team manager, I look forward to expanding my leadership and communicative skills, bonding with my team, and having the opportunity to continue the amazing work SFJ is doing and connecting with my mentor again! #loveyoumrs.neuwirth”
Ian Gates
Junior, Public Administration, George Mason University
“I'd love to go into either organizing, polling, consulting, or administration at the local level. I have interest in both advocacy and policy in environmental justice, education, urban planning, transportation, and election reform/ voting rights.”
Shane Henderson
Junior, Civil Engineering & Environmental Health and Safety, NC A&T
“My career goal is to become an Environmental Engineer. Later on, I’d also like to open up an environmental consulting firm to help companies create civil works that are environmentally sustainable. I’m really looking forward to getting to know my team members and getting to lead them the way my team manager did for me last year"
Why do you love working with SFJ? What are you looking forward to this session?
Ashante Farrior
Junior, Journalism/Mass Communication major, Political Science minor, NC A&T
“I am looking forward to developing as a better leader and collaborating with other ambitious students as a Team Manager! I am looking forward to establishing lasting connections."
Shelby Zielender
Sophomore, Political Science, Davidson College
“My favorite thing about Students For Justice has been connecting with others who are passionate about political engagement and who want to participate on a grassroots level. Collaborating with such an enthusiastic group has inspired me to get more involved in voting rights efforts. I hope to one day work in the realm of elections - either on the advocacy side or on the campaign side. I want to help empower and enfranchise the next generation of voters (as well as other historically marginalized groups)!”
Anaiyah Easter
Junior, Nursing, Norfolk State University
“Students for Justice really gives everyday people the opportunity to make big changes for the country. This program has given the voiceless their voices back, which is truly amazing. I hope to become a traveling NICU or labor and delivery nurse. I am also open to going to PA school to become a physician’s assistant. Along with that journey, I hope to run for governor and then a senate seat.”
John Cort
Recent grad , Political Science , Colgate University
"As a Team Manager, I am excited to continue to educate myself and others on voting rights issues in America and be a part of the solution to help ensure that everyone has a say in our political system. My career goals include attending law school to learn more about public policy, especially in the field of education. I seek to collaborate with a diverse group of people to brainstorm solutions to the issues currently plaguing our educational system, specifically focusing on ways to dismantle the school-to-prison pipeline issue existing in many underserved communities."
These are the future leaders of the fight for voting rights, civil rights, environmental justice, and more. Helping them begin their journeys as leaders fills us with pride.
With hope for our democracy,
Claire Ullman & Sandra Radoff
Co-Directors
Help us find opportunities for our former interns!
We work hard to make Students for Justice a career stepping stone for our interns. One of the ways we do this is by sharing job and internship opportunities with our program alumni. If you know of an opportunity for current college students or recent graduates, in any field, please email us to let us know about it so we can share it with our intern community. You might even consider having one of our former interns work for you this summer!
Want to make a difference?
The ongoing success of the internship program has been made possible by the COVID-friendly fundraising we’ve been doing, with more than 30 virtual house parties held since last spring. (Thank you to our AMAZING house party hosts for pulling their friends together on Zoom to learn more and help raise funds for these paid internships!) Click here to attend, host, or learn more about a house party.

Help us reach more people! Please forward this newsletter to everyone you know who might want to help young people save our democracy.
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