WISPIRG New Voters Project

Something big is happening in our democracy - young people are voting.

Already in this year's Presidential primary contests, young voters have been turning out in record numbers. Youth voter turnout more than tripled in the Iowa caucuses, and increased by 25 percent in New Hampshire, with 53,000 more 18-29 year olds voting than did in 2004. These historic increases echo the surge in youth voter turnout in the last three election cycles.

2008 could be a big year for the youth vote and WISPIRG (Wisconsin Student Public Interest Research Group) is working hard to make sure that it is. Young voters (18-31 year olds) now make up nearly one-quarter of the electorate and as such we have the potential to make the politicians pay attention to us. And we have the potential to make big impacts on issues like global warming, college affordability, health care and financial security.

In order to boost the level of engagement of young people, WISPIRG plans to run a major nonpartisan youth voter turnout effort in the 2008 Presidential election. The project will combine voter registration, list building, issue organizing and grassroots Get Out the Vote (GOTV) strategies at college campuses in Wisconsin to turn out 18-29 year olds who are eligible to vote in the 2008 election.

If you're tired of just talking about change and you want to make a difference, apply for a position with WISPIRG to get out the youth vote in 2008.  

Job Description:

-Run a non-partisan voter registration and turnout campaign in a campus community. Campus Organizers recruit and train a cadre of volunteers to register 18-29 year olds, collect pledges to vote from 18-29 year olds who are already registered to vote, and contact all of these young people to turn out to vote on Election Day.

- Educate students and train new leaders. Campus Organizers teach citizenship and organizing skills. Campus Organizers also oversee an internship program, through which students can earn academic course credit for their work to boost youth voter engagement.

- Build an organization. Campus Organizers build active, cohesive and highly visible WISPIRG campus-organizing committees that are recognized by faculty and student leaders as an asset to the campus community.

- Build a coalition. Campus Organizers work with student volunteers and interns to build a diverse, invested coalition of organizations and people, such as the student government, college president, College Republicans, College Democrats and others, to boost youth voter turnout.

Salary & Training:

Recent college graduates earn $23,750 in their first year on staff. In addition, full-time staff can opt into our state health care coverage, are eligible for paid sick and vacation days, and can apply for our college loan assistance program. Our staff accrue two weeks of vacation by the end of their first year and three weeks by the end of their second year. Staff are also eligible to join our 401(k) program in their second year.

Location: Wisconsin

Qualifications:

Qualified applicants need to be goal-driven and sharp, with good problem-solving skills. Applicants should be driven by the idea of working on a huge, non-partisan youth voter mobilization project, capable of taking on leadership, and ready to work 50-70 hour weeks.

We are looking for a commitment through June of 2009.

Application:

To apply, e-mail your cover letter and resume to megan@wispirgstudents.org. We'll carefully consider your application and if we think you may be a good fit, we'll be in touch.

WISPIRG is an equal opportunity employer and will not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin, religion, sex, age, handicap, pregnancy, sexual orientation, or veteran status.

Bruce Speight
WISPIRG Advocate
(608) 251-9501
bspeight@wispirg.org
www.wispirg.org