The Seeding Change National Fellowship is an intensive summer volunteer program that develops the skills, leadership, and commitment of young people to organize in our communities for racial, economic, and gender justice. The program combines substantial investment in political development and organizing training through placement at host sites with intentional community-building, personal reflection and community-centered leadership development.
Beginning with a week-long training and orientation, fellows come together to orient themselves to the theory and political education behind the community work as well as build community with each other. The summer is an opportunity to develop personally and politically.
The bulk of the fellowship is on the ground work with host organizations. Placed at grassroots organizations across the country, fellows will develop an understanding of organizing work in a local context, develop and strengthen their organizing skills, and connect theory with practice (known as praxis).
Some of the community work at host sites include:
- Community education and organizing through door-knocking and outreach in public housing, transit corridors, and working class neighborhoods
- Facilitating and leading workshops
- Working in community clinics on workers and tenant rights in different languages
- Helping to run youth development programs
- Planning events and rallies for increasing the minimum wage and securing more affordable housing
- Collecting community stories to document immigrant experiences
- Recruiting new volunteers and members
- Strategizing around communications and messaging for campaigns
Fellows are also connecting throughout the summer with Seeding Change based activities. Some of these activities include continued political education, cross-site sharing, weekly national reflection calls, and regional community based political discussions with community organizers, activists, and elders. Fellows will also participate in skill building trainings such as grassroots fundraising and outreach.
Core Program Components
- Hands-on work at respective host sites
- One-Week Program Orientation in the Bay Area, CA
- Local/Regional Activities
- Weekly Webinars for Reflection and Political Education
- Grassroots Fundraising
- One-Week Closing Retreat in the Bay Area, CA
Since 2014, the National Fellowship Program for Asian American Organizing and Civic Engagement has graduated over 200 fellows placed at over 25 host organizations in 13 cities.
