The Karsh Institute of Democracy at the University of Virginia invites applications from activists, journalists, policymakers, artists, and other interested practitioners for its Democracy Practitioner Fellows program. The fellowship serves to support active professionals who are engaged in work on topics and issues related to democracy, broadly understood. The program seeks to develop and engage with networks of practitioners to think about, reflect on, and illuminate democracy today from different perspectives, disciplines, and sectors.

One aim of the fellowship is for the fellow to develop partnerships and networks while at UVA, in addition to supporting a project as proposed by the prospective fellow in their application . Example outcomes of the fellowship could be a public exhibition of work, research report or white paper, live performance, long-form articles for popular media, or other work as proposed by the applicant.

Applicants are especially encouraged to align their projects with at least one of the Karsh Institute’s current thematic focus areas:

1) Participation, Representation and Accountability

2) Civic Learning and Deliberative Dialogue

3) Trusted Media and Access to Reliable Information

4) Robust Democratic Norms and Narratives

Over the course of the appointment, the fellow will be expected to be an active participant in the UVA community and will be invited to attend lectures, visit classes, and engage with students, faculty, staff, and the local community, as appropriate. The fellow will be required to present their work and/or participate in public and private workshops and events. These may include virtual and/or in-person engagements.

While this position will not require full-time residency in Charlottesville, the fellow will be expected to participate in some events and programs on Grounds . The dates of these engagements will be negotiated depending on schedule .

T he University of Virginia’s Karsh Institute of Democracy is committed to addressing the urgent challenges facing democracy today and creating a future where democracy’s aspirations and its reality are unified. Uniquely situated in one of the nation’s most esteemed public institutions, the Karsh Institute is a catalyst of action and impact that builds upon UVA’s expertise in the study of democracy, public policy and leadership, and its history as a public institution founded to prepare citizen-leaders to serve a fledgling democracy.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s Degree

• At least 3 years of experience in relevant work
  

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master’s Degree in relevant field

• At least 5 years of experience with relevant work, especially as it relates to democracy and democratic institutions and culture and engagement with diverse groups of individuals and organizations.
  

For questions about the application process please contact Stefanie Georgakis Abbott at stefanie@virginia.edu .

Process for External Applicants: Please visit UVA job board at https://uva.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/UVAJobs and search for “R0047327 “.

Complete an application online with the following documents:

• Resume, CV, or Portfolio to highlight your previous experience.

• Cover letter that includes: Your interest in the position. Names of UVA scholars you would like to work with, if known.

• Project proposal, not to exceed three pages, describing the work you would like to complete during the fellowship. Please include a timeline for your work and an explanation of how your work would relate to one of the four themes listed above.
  

The University of Virginia, including the UVA Health System which represents the UVA Medical Center, Schools of Medicine and Nursing, UVA Physician’s Group and the Claude Moore Health Sciences Library, are fundamentally committed to the diversity of our faculty and staff. We believe diversity is excellence expressing itself through every person's perspective and lived experiences. We are equal opportunity and affirmative action employers. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, color, disability, gender identity or expression, marital status, national or ethnic origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, veteran status, and family medical or genetic information.

Upload all materials into the resume submission field, multiple documents can be submitted into this one field. Alternatively, merge all documents into one PDF for submission. Applications that do not contain all required documents will not receive full consideration.

References will be completed via UVA’s standardized process Skill Survey. A total of five references will be requested via SkillSurvey during the final phase of the interview process.