Development, Marketing & Communications Intern

Chesapeake Bay Trust

Development, Marketing & Communications

Paid Spring 2025 Semester Internship (10 hours/week)

with option to start early and/or work more hours during winter break

The Chesapeake Bay Trust (the Bay Trust) seeks an energetic Development, Marketing, and Communications Intern to play a critical role in accomplishing Trust’s evolving fundraising, marketing, media, and branding goals.

About the Chesapeake Bay Trust

The Chesapeake Bay Trust seeks to engage and empower a diversity of groups to take actions that enrich the natural resources and local communities of the Chesapeake Bay region. The Bay Trust is a nonprofit grant-making organization established by the Maryland state government in 1985. The Bay Trust currently makes 400+ grants and other awards per year ranging from $100 to ~$400,000 for projects in the K-12 environmental education, on-the-ground restoration, science, capacity building, and community engagement realms. In the past 15 years, the Bay Trust has increased its grant-making four-fold through various revenues streams under the purview of four Trust departments, with annual awards of approximately $20-30 million.

Position Responsibilities

As our Development, Marketing, and Communications (DMC) Intern, you will gain hands-on experience with skills critical to development, marketing, and communications within the growing environmental space. Creative tasks in digital content creation and storytelling are joined by hard skillsets such as donor correspondence and data entry, in addition to forward-facing opportunities through educational tabling and special events. The role is ideal for those considering a future career in nonprofit and/or environmental sector fundraising, communications, marketing, or program management.

This is a hybrid remote/onsite internship requiring at least 50% in-person/on-site work (the rest can be remote), some additional travel, and some evening and weekend hours. The Chesapeake Bay Trust office is located in Annapolis, Maryland, with parking offered at no cost. The position reports to the Vice President for Development with associations to three additional members of the Development, Marketing, and Communications team.

Responsibilities May Include Some or All of the Following:

• Digital Content Creation: Write, edit, or contribute to eNewsletters and eBlasts, social media, blog posts, web content, collateral, and other media in service of marketed revenue streams, donor correspondence, restricted partnerships, and general Trust communications.
• Video & Photography: Secure and organize video and photography from partner and grantee events, projects, and mission-related images for strategic use across Bay Trust communications platforms. While the artistry need not be of professional grade, we’re looking for someone with the ability to document moments that visually capture the story of the Bay Trust. This body of work will be used for social media, email campaigns, website imagery, and annual report, in service of both development and marketing, as well as provide a framework for future and potential grantees.
• Marketing Support: Help prepare printed and digital marketing materials.
• Donor Relations and Correspondence: support donor solicitation and engagement mailings, prepare special event invitations, respond to inquiries from donors, and perform donor- and gift-related data entry in the donor database (Raiser’s Edge, training provided).
• Media: support proactive media outreach and the execution of multiple press events.
• Community Engagement: Represent the Chesapeake Bay Trust at community events, festivals, networking receptions, and other opportunities.
• Special Events: support the execution of multiple Chesapeake Bay Trust events.
• Legislative Engagement: execute correspondence about Chesapeake Bay Trust grantees and activities with legislators in the Maryland General Assembly.

Skills and Qualifications

Required

• Strong literacy in MS Office, Adobe Creative Suite, and/or Canva.
• Strong writing skills, including drafting, editing, and proofreading.
• Attention to detail.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently and effectively with deadlines.
• Ability to travel to the Bay Trust’s Annapolis office and attend some evening/weekend events.

Preferred

• Advanced skills in one or more of: special event management, donor relations, graphic design, digital content creation, website management, or media relations.
• Ideal applicants can execute mail merges, manipulate data and formulas in Excel, and design basic graphics.
• Pursuit of an associate, undergraduate, or graduate degree in environmental science, marketing, journalism, communications, or related field. Students majoring in other fields must have demonstrable experience in communications or marketing.
• Knowledge of or interest in conservation, sustainability, environmental justice, and/or community engagement.

Compensation: $15.00 per hour, 10 hours per week

Term: Spring 2025 Semester with opportunities to start early (late fall 2024) work increased hours during the winter semester break, and/or continue through June, if desired

How to Apply:

The position will remain open until filled. Please submit your resume and cover letter. In your cover letter, please address your ability, based on your skills and experience, to accomplish the specific duties of the position as outlined above. Your cover letter is the most important piece of your application: In your cover letter, please address your ability to accomplish the duties of the position as listed above. Please do not simply list your previous experience. Your cover letter should describe what makes you a strong match specifically for this position, and why this position is a match for you.

The Chesapeake Bay Trust provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, creed, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, national origin, age, or disability in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws. We encourage applications from people of color. Applicants must have a residential address in Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, or Washington, D.C and must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis. The Bay Trust does not participate in programs that require sponsorship for work visas