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Get Involved with IFC!
Fall Internship Opportunities
Jump to Volunteer Opportunities
Background:
Interns in the past from many different intern programs as well as from direct approaches to the InterFaith Conference (IFC) have rated highly the valuable “hands-on” experience they have gained and the opportunities created by being part of a small and collegial staff team. The IFC brings together 11 world religions from Baha’i to Zoroastrian dedicated both to deepen understanding and to work collaboratively for justice in the national Capital region.
Interns have also really appreciated their participation in weekly staff meetings as well as the opportunity to lead them periodically. Interns have also been glad to be able to attend meetings of the Board of Directors and the InterFaith Conference Assembly (our larger stakeholders’ group), both of which have persons from our diverse member faith communities as representatives.
Desired Skills:
- a willingness to work with persons of diverse faiths is required. Please give specific examples, if you can, in your email application.
- experience with diverse faith communities and a personal faith commitment are very helpful but not required.
- being detailed oriented and being ready to work as part of a team while doing one's own work is very important. Please give specific examples in your email application.
- familiarity with Microsoft Office Suite is important; familiarity with it in a windows environment is very helpful.
1) Intern Opportunity: Finalize the preparation for printing of and fund-raising for the 28th Edition of the Emergency Food, Shelter and Health Care Directory as well as posting each of the 400 entries on our website.
The Directory is the most comprehensive compact directory of its kind in the region. Research has shown that at least 300,000 families and individuals get the help they need through appropriate referrals made by non-profits, congregations, government agencies and others using our annually updated Directory. Helping us distribute the 27th Edition is a small but important part of this internship. The Directory is also widely distributed by the United Way and the Council of Governments in this region. (You can check out the current edition and learn other valuable information about our work at our website: www.ifcmw.org. Click on "Emergency Directory" in the left column to see the current Edition.)
2) Intern Opportunity: Assistant InterFaith Concert Organizer
The intern will assist the Executive Director in planning the world's best-developed multi-religious concert and in following up from it. The 32nd InterFaith Concert – A Celebration of the Sacred in Song, Dance and Chant -- will be held at Washington National Cathedral, on Tuesday evening, Nov. 15, 2011. The concert is also the largest fund-raising event for the InterFaith Conference and the intern may well work with the Executive Director on this aspect of the Concert. Please note in your email any interest or experience you have in public relations and/or in a fund-raising event.
3) Interreligious work to advance justice
Work with our part-time Consultant for Advancing Justice, Ann Delorey, as we develop and/or act on our public policy statements, respond to regional threats to religious freedom, work with diverse faith community representatives on creating a supplement to our Teaching About Religion book focusing on religious freedom, collaborate on our bi-monthly “InterFaith Connect” e-newsletter and help her staff a quarterly meeting of our InterFaith Legislative Review Committee.
4) Intern Opportunity: Fund-raising and Grant-writing for the Non-Profit
This is a hands-on learning experience about fund-raising and grant writing for a non-profit organization. The InterFaith Conference's Executive Director brings more than 30 years of experience. Our part-time Development Director brings even more years. The intern will work with the Executive Director in the fund-raising aspects of the 32nd InterFaith Concert, the world's best developed multi-religious musical event, which will take place Tuesday, on November 15, 2011 at Washington National Cathedral. In addition to helping the InterFaith Conference with current fund-raising, you will research and draft a grant proposal for one part of IFC's vital work, explore potential foundation sources using our access to the Foundation Center mid-level on-line Directory and submit the grant to one or more foundations. While the intern’s actions will no doubt be responded to after the completion of your fall internship, we'll let you know what they decide. Please note in your email any experience you have with a fund-raising event and/or grant writing.
5) Intern Opportunity: Assist Executive Director
This position will enable the intern to learn about the many facets of non-profit work. S/he will, for example, assist him in helping plan the 25th Anniversary Interfaith Service for the 1986 Assisi event (October 16, 2011) that was a defining moment in interfaith work, work with him with individual congregations and faith communities, help him prepare for the 8th Annual InterFaith Bridge Builders Awards program and help him implement the FIRE Task Force (Focused Intently on Revenue Enhancement) plan to solicit or cultivate one leadership donor each day.
6) Intern Opportunity: Increase media’s exposure to interfaith news in this region
The Intern will assist the Executive Director in increasing the media’s exposure to interfaith news in this region through traditional media and social media. S/he will particularly work with the local version of the Washington Post Faith Online.
7) Intern Opportunity: Managing our Electronic Communications, Social Media Outlets and Online weekly Interfaith Chat.
Using Facebook, Twitter and IFC’s website, an intern will regularly communicate with constituents about IFC news and events and moderate the online weekly chat room, including selecting topics and persons to be on the programs, creating the initial 10 minute video of the person and topic chosen for that week. Knowledge of Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, Blogger and computer video application is required. Knowledge of Drupal, the software used to create our website, very helpful.
8) Intern Opportunity: Update IFC’s good media list and share information on IFC’s programs with media outlets and with those congregations (300 or more) who have agreed to publicize IFC’s programs four times/year.
A great opportunity for a communications or media student! IFC has developed media lists for publicizing our programs with religious and secular media, calendar announcements and public service announcements. But persons responsible and their emails change and the list needs to be made current. In the process, the intern will add other media and learn who is out there doing what. Also we have replaced our Congregational Coordinators of Publicity mailing list with an email list of more than 300 persons who have agreed to receive and publicize IFC’s programs four times/year. Preparing materials for them to use and sending them out in a timely way is another significant learning and work experience.
9) Intern Opportunity: Strengthening the Teaching About Religion in High Schools FILLED
The intern will work with the Executive Director, Rev. Clark Lobenstine, and the Board Champion for this project, Dr. D.C. Rao, in strengthening the teaching about religion in public and private high schools, using our unique resource, Teaching About Religion, and our supplements on symbols, values and now the environment. He will be responsible for finishing our third Supplement on the environment. The Teaching About Religion resource book for high school teachers in social studies, world history and/or world religions includes 9-11 page chapters written by a member of each of our 11 member faith communities (from Baha’i to Zoroastrian) in response to the same set of 42 questions. Nearly 1,400 copies have been distributed, most sold to area school systems. Building on work done by interns and Board members to broaden the use of this book to other school systems outside the metropolitan DC area and to other constituencies (such as private schools, the National Catholic Education Association, the National Education Association, etc) will be another important part of the intern’s responsibilities.
10) Intern Opportunity: Greater Washington Interfaith Power and Light FILLED
Deepen the commitment of congregations of diverse faiths to educate about climate change, "green" the congregation and share in advocacy through the Greater Washington Interfaith Power and Light, a program of the InterFaith Conference. This builds on work already done in 350 metro-area congregations. Work closely with Joelle Novey, its director, and its interfaith steering committee.
To Apply to any of these non-stipended internship opportunities, please use as your subject line “SUMMER, 2011, INTERN APPLICATION” so your email does not get buried in an overload of emails! Send your email inquiry and resume to ifc@ifcmw.org THANKS!
There are many ways to get involved with IFC including volunteering, interning and contributing financially. IFC is constantly looking for individuals to help us out in various projects from youth service events to weekly or monthly visits to help out in our offices for a few hours.
The following are just a few opportunities:
Publicity volunteer - help get the word out about IFC events in your local congregation or organization. We need individuals who will share IFC's wonderful opportunities to deepen understanding and work collaboratively among peoples of many faiths.
Ushers, greeters, and other volunteers - for annual events such as the InterFaith Concert: A Celebration of the Sacred in Song, Dance and Chant, IFC's Bridge Builders Awards and the Richard W. Snowdon Lecture and Martin Luther King Prayer Services.
Volunteering can lead to some very remarkable experiences with people of extremely cultures, backgrounds and faiths!
If you are interested in volunteering or interning, please contact Reverend Clark Lobenstine, clarkifc@aol.com, or Judy Bond, judyb@ifcmw.org or call 202-234-6300
Online donations are always welcome or send contributions to:
InterFaith Conference of Metropolitan Washington
The Gate House 100 Allison St. NW
Washington, DC 20011
