CAA Graduate Student Summer Fellowship

Position: CAA Graduate Student Summer Fellow

Stipend: $1,150/week (including funding from fellow’s school)

Hours: 40 hours per week for 10 weeks

Fellowship Period: From 5/27/25 to 8/8/25

Location: Flexible, with some in-person, project-based meetings and events required in San Francisco

Reports to: CAA Education Equity Policy Manager

Deadline: Applications accepted on a rolling basis.

Posting: January 2025

About CAA and AACRE

Chinese for Affirmative Action was founded in 1969 to protect the civil and political rights of Chinese Americans and to advance multiracial democracy in the United States. Today, CAA is a progressive voice in and on behalf of the broader Asian American and Pacific Islander community. We advocate for systemic change that protects immigrant rights, promotes language diversity, and remedies racial and social injustice.

In 2014, CAA helped to launch the Asian Americans for Civil Rights and Equality (AACRE) network that focuses on long-term movement building, capacity infrastructure, and leadership support for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders committed to social justice. Including CAA, there are currently 11 partnering member groups with unique strengths. Fiscal sponsorship, administrative, and operational support is provided centrally for all of these groups so they can focus on their core programs.

More recently, CAA, along with AAPI Equity Alliance and the San Francisco State University Asian American Studies Department, launched the Stop AAPI Hate coalition to document and respond to incidents of hate at the local, state, and national levels. The mission of Stop AAPI Hate is to advance equity, justice, and power by dismantling systemic racism and building a multiracial movement to end anti-Asian American and Pacific Islander hate. This is an exciting period of growth and impact for Stop AAPI Hate. Due to the extraordinary demand and support for our work, we are poised to deepen and expand our reach and engagement throughout the country.

At the grassroots level, our community building work nurtures the ability of immigrants to participate fully in civic life. These activities include direct services, leadership development, and civic engagement with limited-English proficient newcomers and immigrants on issues that impact our community. At the systemic level, CAA leads advocacy, communications, and movement building work to improve public policy and shape public discourse. We produce community-based research, publish policy analyses and recommendations, influence opinion through media, organize to engage elected and government officials, and nurture a range of progressive coalitions.

Position Overview

CAA is seeking up to two summer fellows to work on policy research and advocacy. This is an opportunity to work with a small, close-knit team in a mission-driven, start-up environment. The summer fellowship program is designed to include traditional fellowship elements, such as brown bag lunches and guest speakers, and community building opportunities, such as retreats and field trips.

The fellow’s responsibilities may include and are not limited to:

• Conducting policy and legal research
• Drafting memoranda, documents, and public-facing materials
• Identifying, tracking, and analyzing legislation and other policy initiatives at the federal, state, and local levels
• Developing policy recommendations
• Attending meetings, hearings, and briefings
• Representing CAA and Stop AAPI Hate at external meetings
• Engaging in related direct service, programmatic, and advocacy work
• Supporting CAA and Stop AAPI Hate staff and volunteers
• Other duties as assigned

The fellow reports to the Education Equity Policy Manager and is expected to work approximately 40 hours/week on Pacific Standard Time, for 10 weeks. The fellowship period is from 5/27/25 to 8/8/25 (Please note: CAA’s office will be closed between 6/30-7/4/2025). The position is open to applicants located in the San Francisco Bay Area. Although fellows can work from any location, please be mindful that there will be some required project-based in-person meetings and events in San Francisco. CAA is unable to reimburse for travel expenses. The fellow uses their own computer with access to a CAA email and Google Workspace.

CAA encourages candidates to secure outside funding (e.g., through school). CAA supplements any funding provided by the fellow’s school, so that the fellow receives a total weekly stipend of $1,150. Stipends are offered to help defray living and personal expenses during the fellowship.

Qualifications

• A graduate student in law, policy, public administration, or a related field
• Strong commitment to the mission and values of AACRE, CAA, and Stop AAPI Hate, including a commitment to social justice, equity, and civic engagement
• Familiarity with the process of policymaking and/or specific policy areas, such as civil rights, education equity, immigration, language diversity, economic justice, and/or community safety and justice
• Excellent writing skills
• Comfortable with fluid and fast-paced environments
• Open to direction, learning, and feedback, with a strong desire to learn and grow professionally
• Respectful and communicative with colleagues, coalition partners, and community members
• Willing to pitch in, from bringing your ideas to the table, to rolling up your sleeves to get the work done

To Apply

Please apply directly on our Gusto platform at bit.ly/gssi0125 and include your cover letter, resume and 3-5 page policy, legal or research writing sample.

Candidates are encouraged to apply ASAP, as applications will be reviewed and decisions will be made on a rolling basis.

CAA shares fiscal sponsorship with Asian Americans for Civil Rights and Equality. Fellows hired by CAA will be fellows at AACRE.

AACRE is dedicated to fostering a diverse, inclusive, and equitable work environment where everyone is valued and discrimination has no place. We are committed to serving the rich diversity of Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, and strongly encourage women, trans and gender expansive individuals, people of color, immigrants, LGBTQIA+ individuals, people with conviction or arrest records, and those living with disabilities to apply.

Check the website for the most updated job announcement and if the position is still open: https://caasf.org/jobs