The 2024 State Fellowship has come to a close. Check out our impact report here and read below for more info.
Coming into 2024, Kairos knew the stakes were high for our communities. Authoritarianism and political violence are on the rise globally. Domestically, not only is it a presidential election year, but issues like climate, housing, reproductive health, and LGBTQ+ rights are taking center stage. Our movement is being tasked with two concurrent fights: pushing back against the opposition’s attacks on our existing rights and safety, and carving out new pathways for creating a future that’s better than the world we have now.
Reflecting on the conversations sparked over the course of the program and our 1-on-1 discussions with Fellows, we’re excited to highlight 3 key ways the Fellowship impacted participants and their organizations. Click here to read our impact report.
What will the fellowship include?
Organizers will bring a priority campaign so that they can implement learnings immediately. From March - May, fellows will meet three times a month for training sessions and workshops. From June - August, fellows will meet 1-2 times per month for training sessions. Kairos will also host regular office hours where participants will receive coaching.
We start with a kickoff session for Organizing Directors and/or managers of fellows to set expectations and offer tools for helping the organization take in digital strategies from the fellowship.
After each training session, organizers will walk away with an action step to implement learnings in real-time. We’ll discuss the challenges and successes of implementing these in Kairos’ digital spaces (Strive, Google Groups, Signal), in office hours, and workshops.
Kairos will host a monthly cohort call (regional or issue-based) to discuss campaigning or regional nuance and strategy that is open to Organizing Directors and/or managers who are welcome though not required to attend.
what skills will fellows take away?
How to respond to mis/disinformation and propaganda
As we continue to face our opposition on-the-ground and online, we must be prepared to combat mis/disinformation. Kairos will host dedicated sessions and workshops for fellows to train on the current state of mass mis/disinformation and how to inoculate their members against it.
How to build strategies for digital organizing
Kairos trains organizations based on our core understanding that most teams (whether they are aware or not) possess the capacity to organize in the digital realm and just need support implementing their ideas online. We will help your organization not only understand but execute based on this knowledge. Read more about our organizing pedagogy here.
How to workshop your campaign
Fellows will engage in campaign strategy workshops across issue areas including housing, authoritarianism, climate, reproductive justice, LGBTQIA+ justice, voting rights, rural organizing, police, and anti-carceral work.
How to not reinvent the wheel
Fellows will learn from expert organizing strategists, examine current and historic case studies, receive training, and learn how to use experimentation to their benefit with focus on your organization’s priority campaigns.
Read more about the fellowship curriculum here.
Who is leading the fellowship?
Kairos has cultivated a team of partners and consultants to assist on each element of the curriculum. These partners and consultants span decades of experience in the field and offer expertise in various areas of organizing, both online and offline.
On the Kairos team, our Director of Organizing and Organizing Manager – Joe and Kelvin, respectively – have 25 combined years of organizing experience spanning housing, electoral, labor, youth, racial justice, and LGTBQ+ organizing from California (Los Angeles) to New England (Massachusetts & New Hampshire). After a year of training on these principles with 60+ organizations and 120+ organizers, they are excited for a deeper-dive in 2024 centered around intentionally diverse skillset acquisition for organizers in the movement during one of the most pivotal electoral years in our lifetime.
Who is participating?
Our goal is to recruit numerous organizations within as many states as possible to foster statewide capacity for power building. That said, we have partners from all over the U.S. jumping in to this fellowship including: the People’s Action network and affiliates including Down Home North Carolina and Arkansas Public Policy Panel, as well as other organizations including We The People Michigan, New Georgia Project, Florida Rising, La Unión del Pueblo Entero (LUPE), and Ground Game LA.
Interested and ready to sign up?
Click here to sign-up to connect with the Organizing Team – we can’t wait to partner with you.