Oramenta Newsome Community Development Fellow

LISC is one of the country’s largest community development organizations, helping forge vibrant, resilient communities across America. LISC works with residents and partners to close gaps in health, wealth, and opportunity so that people and places can thrive. We do this by acting as a conduit for grants, loans and equity--and by providing technical assistance and capacity building--to locally rooted organizations that carry out the work in communities.

Oramenta Newsome Community Development Fellowship

The fellowship is a ten-week (late May to early August) paid fellowship opportunity for individuals who have exhibited a keen interest in community development and want to support affordable housing, economic development, sustainability, and other community development projects in the D.C. region. Fellows will be placed at LISC DC partner nonprofit host organizations in D.C. or surrounding areas like Prince George’s County.

Oramenta Newsome served as Executive Director of LISC DC for nearly 25 years. Throughout her life, Oramenta balanced a deeply rooted neighborhood orientation with a national perspective. She dedicated decades to making Washington, DC a global city that benefited neighborhood residents. Oramenta believed that all people want the same quality of life in their neighborhood – a home, a job, and access to resources and amenities.

By continuing to invest in projects and initiatives that help remove barriers to opportunity and close wealth gaps, we are one step closer towards realizing her vision for Washington, DC – a fair access, community-driven city. With this fellowship, we are creating a lasting legacy and honoring her commitment to community development.

What You Need to Know About the Fellowship:

• Fellows will be placed with local nonprofit community development organizations pursuing projects in community development across Washington D.C. Example nonprofits include affordable housing developers, community development corporations, workforce training providers, organizations supporting small businesses and commercial corridors, etc.

• At the direction of the nonprofit organizations, fellows will work with the nonprofit to support and engage with local small businesses, residents and other stakeholders that they serve on a daily basis. More information can be found here.

• Fellows will work approximately 35 hours per week, for 10 weeks and will be paid at a rate of $22 per hour.

• The fellow class (expected to be approximately five to six individuals) will start in May 2026. LISC will provide the fellows with a comprehensive experience that will include an orientation, seminar series, neighborhood tours, ongoing mentorship, and a final presentation of their work.

Responsibilities

Under the supervision of the staff of LISC’s nonprofit partners, Newsome Fellows will work on a range of tasks depending on the partner organization. Sample tasks include:

• Work with the nonprofit partner to support local economic development initiatives.

• Assemble key information about the community for the nonprofit partner by conducting outreach to small businesses, local residents and other key stakeholders to gather data and discern qualitative insights on the current landscape in the community.

• Support research around how to steward resources to local nonprofit affordable housing complexes and resident cooperatives.

• Support place-based initiatives such as creative placemaking, arts and culture, etc. that honors the unique culture and histories of local neighborhoods.

• Develop press materials highlighting the community development work of nonprofit partner.

• Coordinate and support nonprofit partners with local event planning and distribution of external resources.

• Provide on-going logistic and administrative support for nonprofit partner as needed.

• Perform other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university and two years of working experience or in pursuit of an advanced degree or High School diploma with six years of related professional experience.

• Familiarity and/or working knowledge of community development issues including affordable housing, small business development, workforce development, or economic development preferred.

• Willingness to work at least 3-5 days in person, in an office environment.

• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills.

• Experience engaging in community outreach.

• Experience conducting surveys, stakeholder interviews, and focus groups a plus.

• Ability to work collaboratively with co-workers and representatives from the nonprofit and private sector.

• Capacity to work simultaneously on multiple tasks and projects, set priorities for a challenging workload, and be a positive, solution-oriented professional.

• Ability to approach work with a great sense of humility, and strong interest in and passion for community impact.

• Familiarity and/or working knowledge of the DC region and the communities we serve is a plus.

• Must have the capability to work remotely, including access to a working laptop or computer, internet and phone.

• Conversational fluency in Spanish, Korean, Mandarin or Amharic may be helpful (but not required) as these languages are common in the communities we serve.

*Actual salaries may be based on several factors including, but not limited to, a candidate's skill set, experience, education, work location and other qualifications.

Our benefits include:

Medical, Dental, Vision Coverage: Comprehensive health plans for you and your family's well-being; Disability Insurance: Long-term and short-term coverage for peace of mind; Retirement Savings: Secure your future with our 401(k) and 403(b) plans; Generous Holidays: Enjoy ample time off to recharge and celebrate; Vacation, PTO, and Sick Days: Take advantage of flexible time-off policies to maintain work-life balance; Tuition Assistance: Pursue your educational goals with support from our tuition assistance program; Referral Program: Earn rewards for referring qualified candidates to join our team; Professional Development Opportunities: Grow and advance in your career with access to ongoing training and development programs tailored to your goals.

LISC is an equal opportunity employer. LISC does not discriminate in employment on account of actual or perceived race, color, creed, religion, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, age, sex or gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, lactation and related medical conditions), gender identity or expression (including transgender status), sexual orientation, marital status, military status or veteran status, unfavorable discharge from military service, physical or mental disability, protected medical condition as defined by applicable state or local law, genetic information or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state or local laws and ordinances.

We will endeavor to make a reasonable accommodation to the known physical or mental limitations of a qualified applicant with a disability unless the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the operation of our business.