Philanthropy/Development Fellowship

Disability Belongs™ Leadership Program: Fellowship in Philanthropy/Development

RespectAbility Fellow Emma Adelman and Patrick McCarthy talking in front of a RespectAbility banner

Disability Belongs™ Fellow Emma Adelman learning from Patrick McCarthy of The Annie E. Casey Foundation

Disability Belongs™ is on the front lines of inclusive philanthropy. We are passionate about bringing intersectionality into not only our work, but into the philanthropy sector at-large. Many philanthropists do not explicitly include the disability community in their portfolio, even though disability cuts across every demographic – race/ethnicity, sex/gender, sexual orientation, religion, class, and more. Indeed, the disability community is the largest minority group in the country. If a philanthropist supports any underserved population, they already are supporting people with disabilities. However, they may not do so with an understanding of what works, or they might not realize that some of their constituents have disabilities in the first place.

That is where our Philanthropy/Development team comes in: we cultivate relationships with philanthropists who have mutual interests and are passionate about helping others. We provide them with best practices on how to include people with disabilities successfully in both their philanthropy and internal operations. We do this in a variety of ways, and the primary areas for Philanthropy/Development Fellows are two-fold:

Support our work in reaching out to philanthropists – foundations, individuals, and corporations – on how they can better serve people with disabilities, especially in their already existing work.
Secure the needed financial support so all of our departments – including Policy, Entertainment and Media, Leadership and Workforce Development, and Faith and Spirituality – can function and expand so we can continue to fight stigmas and expand opportunities for people with disabilities. We ask philanthropists to support specific program areas and general operations.

Our program is fully accessible for people with disabilities and offers full-time in-house job coaching, skills development, and networking opportunities. Assistive technology is available as needed.

Who We Want

The Disability Belongs™ Leadership Program is ideal for people who want to gain skills and contacts while making a positive difference for people with disabilities. We are looking for thoughtful and results-driven individuals who want to achieve breakthrough results while getting hands-on experience. The Fellowship is for college and graduate students, as well as for people transitioning into the workforce for the first time, or back into the workforce after a break. Fellows ideally will have an interest in the philanthropy/development sector. Past development experience not necessary.

Fellowship Duties

The Fellows will work closely with our Disability Belongs™ Leadership Program Manager and Senior Director of Inclusive Philanthropy and Development. Individual projects will be assigned based on an individual’s unique skill set and their own ability to “bring something to the table.” Tasks might include grant and proposal writing, prospect research, donor relations, and attending donor and prospect meetings. Philanthropy/Development Fellows will join supervisors at workshops, webinars, and events that pertain to philanthropy and development. Fellows will learn about all of our issue areas and departments as well.

Each Fellow will receive many opportunities to learn new skills, network, and gain direct experience. In addition to hands-on work experiences, all Fellows will participate in special presentations by guest speakers and intensive grant writing and fundraising workshops. A career plan will be developed by each Fellow that will enable them to gain appropriate workplace experience while contributing directly and measurably to our organization’s impact. Upon the completion of the Fellowship program, applicants can expect to come away with excellent experience in the fields of policy, strategic communications, and fundraising; fair knowledge of issues for people with disabilities; and leadership skills to help them grow into confident advocates.

What Is It?

5-month, fully remote training program for leaders committed to creating systemic change for people with disabilities
Participants apply to specific Disability Belongs™ departments with the opportunity to collaborate with others
Fellows will build professional skills, network, participate in a diverse speaker series, work with a professional writing coach, as well as access 1:1 career planning support

Who Is It For?

Leaders pursuing careers in public policy, advocacy, communications, accessibility, inclusion, and belonging, fundraising, nonprofit management, or faith-based inclusion
College or graduate students
Individuals entering the workforce for the first time
Individuals re-entering the workforce
Individuals seeking new career opportunities

What Are The Details?

Core working hours are 11 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. ET
Fellows are asked to work at least 15 hours per week
Fellows cannot work more than 20 hours per week
Fellows will be paid $20.00/hr

Disability Belongs™ provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, veteran status or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements, Disability Belongs™ complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.