City Bureau Civic Information Fellowship 2026 (stipend available) – YOA

Deadline: August 11, 2026

Applications are open for the City Bureau Civic Information Fellowship 2026. The City Bureau’s Civic Information Fellowship is a paid, six-month, two-section program for Chicagoans who need to develop their expertise in neighborhood engagement, civic participation and journalism. With help from City Bureau employees, fellows will use these expertise to design and implement group initiatives that assist enhance their neighbors’ entry to info. Their work prioritizes the South and West sides of Chicago.

Fellows attend weekly studying and co-working periods to construct their expertise. Fellows work individually and in groups to deeply perceive the knowledge wants of their communities, collect info, construct relationships over time, and inform compelling tales about civic points.

City Bureau emphasizes racial fairness and neighborhood engagement, and contributors can anticipate to have vital conversations about how folks create, obtain and share info; and the way they take part in civic life. All contributors are inspired to suppose creatively about the way to strengthen the native info ecosystems in Chicago’s communities of shade.

Program Phases

The fellowship is break up into two phases. 

• Phase 1: Fellows give attention to spending as a lot time of their communities as potential to completely perceive what info their neighborhood wants and design a mission that meets that want. Fellows will decide to 12 hours of labor per week for 14 weeks and shall be paid a $5,000 stipend in 2-week increments. 
• Phase 2: Fellows who efficiently full Phase 1 shall be invited to proceed their work on this stage. With designs in place, organisers will give attention to placing your info wants initiatives into motion. Fellows will decide to eight hours every week for 10 weeks and shall be paid a $2,800 stipend in 2-week increments.

Eligibility

• No particular skilled expertise is required. If you might be excited to develop ability to maintain your neighborhood knowledgeable they encourage you to apply.
• They search for individuals who have a demonstrated curiosity in civic points and engagement, neighborhood organizing, public coverage or journalism by means of private initiatives, earlier coaching, faculty and internships. If you’re a chronically inquisitive individual keen about storytelling, constructing neighborhood and discovering inventive methods to attach folks with vital info, this OPPORTUNITY is for you. Former fellows are welcome to apply.
• Applicants have to be dwelling in or round Chicago to take part, as they do vital in-individual engagement and neighborhood work within the metropolis. They don’t provide a distant-solely possibility. The time commitments are obligatory and repeated absences will put your capacity to finish the fellowship in danger.
• They extremely worth lived {and professional} expertise on the South and West sides in addition to energetic or skilled Chicago Documenters. You will need to have dependable transportation to and from their Bronzeville workplace, and all through South and West Side neighborhoods to finish your weekly assignments. You should even be licensed to work within the United States.

Application

Applications for the autumn fellowship cycle are due 11:59 p.m. CST on Aug. 11. No late submissions shall be accepted. They suggest saving your solutions in a separate file and utilizing a phrase counter to maintain your solutions concise.

Click here to apply

For extra info, go to City Bureau Civic Information Fellowship.