Job Description

About Cabrini Green Legal Aid

Cabrini Green Legal Aid (CGLA) was established in 1973 to serve the legal needs arising from the lack of opportunity, criminalization of poverty, and racial inequity experienced within Chicago's Cabrini Green public housing community. Since then, CGLA has grown beyond a single neighborhood to become a citywide, countywide, and statewide leader in proactively filling the void of legal representation, wraparound services, legal information and resources, and advocacy exclusively for low-income individuals negatively impacted by the criminal legal system. Any engagement with the criminal legal system can greatly disrupt an individual, family, and community's quality of life.

CGLA is distinguished among legal aid service providers locally, throughout Illinois, and nationally as having expertise in legal matters related to the direct and collateral consequences of the criminal legal system. Since 2014, we have been the sole legal aid services provider serving Cook County with the distinction of focusing exclusively on individuals and families who have been adversely impacted by the criminal legal system in all legal program areas: criminal records, emerging adults, criminal defense, housing law, and family law. We provide direct legal services, advocate for policy reforms, and provide legal information and resources to other legal aid organizations, pro bono attorneys, and the general public. We also support our clients holistically with wraparound social services from our social workers. Our policy and advocacy work is not performed as a separate entity; rather it is informed by our legal services and the lived experiences of our Leadership Council, an Advisory Group made up of former CGLA clients and community members directly impacted by the criminal legal system.

CGLA’s Mission, Purpose and Vision

• Mission: We provide holistic legal services that include social support services and advocacy for individuals and communities negatively impacted by the criminal legal system.
• Purpose: CGLA exists to remove barriers to equity in the criminal legal system.
• Vision: A more just and equitable criminal legal system.

CGLA’s Development Intern will perform various tasks, including supporting and developing donor solicitation materials,assistingwith donor acknowledgments and database entries, and researching corporate and firm prospects. This position will also help CGLA’s Development team plan and prepare for CGLAspecial events. Furthermore, the Intern willassistwith designing essential online communications and social media related to fundraising and development. The Intern working with CGLA will gain hands-on experience working across teams, project management, researching prospects, message generation, and other skills from a longtime social justice organization with deep roots in Chicago.

Essential Duties:

• Assist the Development team with the Donor Acknowledgment process.

• Assistwith data entry into CGLA’s donor database, Salesforce.

• Assist Development Associates in creating and implementing a social media calendar around fundraising events. Draft posts and create graphics, as needed.

• Assistwith administrative tasks in preparation for CGLA’sspecial eventsand fundraisers. Contact outside vendors for pricing estimates and general information forspecial events.

• Help the Development Associates prepare materials for solicitation, as needed.

• Assistwith the mailing of solicitations to major donors, as needed.

• Research corporate or firm prospect opportunities for CGLA Annual Partnerships.

• Update CGLA’s MailChimp database.

• Assist with the Arts and Archive exhibit.

Other Duties:

Perform other duties as assigned.

Qualifications and Experience:

The ideal candidate willpossessthe following:

• A demonstrated commitment to social justice and disrupting the systemic racism our criminal legal system perpetuates.

• At least one year of undergraduate studiescomplete.

• Access to laptop and high-speed internet for when working off-site.

• Experience with social media platforms,i.e.,Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn.

• Experience with design platformsi.e.,Wix, Photoshop, Canva is a plus.

• Experience with databases such as Salesforce is a plus.

Required Skills

• Excellent writing skills (writing samples will berequested).

• Strong organizational skills.

• Strong research skills.

• Ability to stay on top of several projects.

• Knowledge ofMSOffice.

Supervisory Responsibility

None

Office Hours

General office hours are from Monday through Friday 9:00am to 5:00pm. Interns are expected to volunteer40 hoursa week. Most of the hours can be completed remotely. Intern will work with the Supervisor todetermineoffice hours for the internship.

NOTE:Non-traditional hours – occasional weekends and evenings may berequired.

Physical Requirements

• Sit forlong periodsof time

• Speak clearly so listeners can understand.

• Understand the speech of another person.

• Must be able to work in a stressful work environment.

• The employeeis regularly required tosit, walk, talk, read,seeand hear. The employee isfrequentlyrequired to use hands and fingers to type, handle, or feel and reach. The employeeis regularly required tostand and walk. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds.

Travel Requirements

Must travel to attend occasional meetings at CGLA’s office (6 S. Clark Street, Chicago), to off-site meetings, and development fundraising events.