ILR High Road Ithaca Fellowship
Groundswell

ILR High Road New York is statewide program that aims to teach ILR students practical methods for civic & community engagement and leadership. The High Road Ithaca Program offers students paid community engaged internships with partner organizations committed to social and environmental justice, diversity and equity, access and education in Ithaca and surrounding areas during the fall or spring semesters. Students work 5-10 hours a week and participate in critical reflection activities throughout the semester.

Groundswell Center for Local Food & Farming empowers people from diverse backgrounds with skills, knowledge, and access to resources, so we can work together to build a more just, sustainable food system. We operate an Incubator Farm and offer workshops and technical assistance to a diverse community of farmers who face structural barriers to land access. Groundswell is operated by a skilled team of five part-time staff.

Groundswell seeks two fellows to support two separate projects: a Fundraising Fellow and a Community Needs Assessment Fellow. Each fellow will work, respectively, with one of Groundswell’s Co-Executive Directors, who will provide supervision and mentorship.

Fundraising Fellow: Support Groundswell’s viability by participating in grassroots fundraising work including event planning, donor outreach, campaign narrative development, and, optionally, grant writing.

Community Needs Assessment Fellow: Help Groundswell gather feedback and direction for our future programming by conducting surveys and interviews and analyzing and sharing the results.

Fundraising Fellow:

• Support fundraising event on September 13 via turnout, day-of support, and follow-up
• Engage individual donors through targeted outreach (throughout placement)
• Support end-of-year fundraising campaigns through narrative development and outreach, concluding in December
• Optional: engage in grant writing

Community Needs Assessment Fellow:

• Assist in developing and distributing surveys to beginning farmers and agricultural stakeholders
• Conduct interviews with farmers, service providers, and community partners
• Compile and organize survey and interview data
• Analyze findings and identify trends across different farmer populations
• Identify common themes as well as unique needs among historically underserved groups
• Help document gaps, strengths, and opportunities within the regional service landscape
• Assist in creating a resource map highlighting educational, technical assistance, and funding opportunities for beginning farmers
• Participate in project meetings and provide progress updates

Groundswell values team members who share our social justice mission and are self-motivated, pro-active problem solvers, and able to work independently. For the fundraising position, some background in organizing and/or willingness to speak with and build relationships with new people will be helpful. For the community needs assessment role, the intern is comfortable engaging with diverse community members through surveys, interviews, and outreach. Strong communication, organization, and basic research skills are important, along with the ability to analyze information and identify patterns and emerging themes.