Institute of Politics

Overview of Organization:

The IJ Clinic on Entrepreneurship at the University of Chicago Law School is a nonprofit that supports, promotes, and advocates on behalf of low-income entrepreneurs in Chicago in four ways: legal service, education, outreach and advocacy. The IJ Clinic’s attorneys work with University of Chicago law students to provide pro-bono legal support for entrepreneurs to pursue their dreams. In addition to direct client service, the IJ Clinic provides free training for entrepreneurs through city-wide workshops and conferences, and annually hosts South Side Pitch, a shark-tank style competition event with cash prizes, aimed at highlighting entrepreneurship on the South Side. The IJ Clinic also develops legislative advocacy campaigns to promote economic freedom and entrepreneurship as vital forces for community development in areas of historic divestment. Policy campaigns include promoting fairer laws for licensed low-income workers, zoning, shared kitchen spaces, and street vendors and streamlining the process that allows entrepreneurs to revitalize commercial city-owned vacant lots. For more information on the IJ Clinic, please visit www.ij.org/clinic.

Internship Summary:

The IJ Clinic on Entrepreneurship Community Engagement Intern will gain professional experience with advocacy for entrepreneurship and community economic development, policy research, community organizing, digital outreach, event planning, and some of the administrative duties that keep an office running, as well as an opportunity to work directly with attorneys, entrepreneurs, and policy makers.
The IJ Clinic on Entrepreneurship Community Engagement Intern will be able to work on a hybrid basis with a schedule of 3 days in the office and 2 days remote.

Responsibilities:

• Co-creating marketing and outreach strategies for the South Side Pitch 2025 application season
• Help expand the IJ Clinic’s digital outreach on social media, post articles and events relevant to Chicago entrepreneurs
• Help with supporting the front end of the IJ Clinic website
• Attend community events for the IJ Clinic to reach new audiences of entrepreneurs
• Identify local media outlets and publications to publicize the IJ Clinic’s efforts
• Brainstorm how to effectively spread awareness of the IJ Clinic’s mission and services
• Assist in planning and implementing outreach events and trainings to the Greater Chicago Metropolitan Area
• Research and develop policy change recommendations for the State of Illinois and City of Chicago
• Identify key community stakeholders to spread awareness about our advocacy efforts
• Play a role in organizing and effectuating the IJ Clinic’s policy campaigns

Qualifications:

• Strong communication skills, spoken and written
• Detail-oriented, independent worker
• Creative thinker and problem solver
• A passion for promoting entrepreneurship and supporting small businesses
• Experience with Microsoft Office (Word and Outlook) is needed
• Knowledge of event and project management tools and customer relationship management systems (Microsoft Excel, Monday.com, Salesforce, HubSpot) is preferred and useful
• Familiarity with community outreach and social media marketing (TikTok/Facebook/Instagram/LinkedIn) is a plus
• All school years and graduation dates allowed
• All majors allowed
• No US work authorization required

About the Supervisor:

Your supervisor will be Aleksei Kaminski, the Operations and Community Relations Manager at the IJ Clinic on Entrepreneurship. Prior to joining IJ Clinic on Entrepreneurship, Aleksei was a Fulbright Scholar in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. During his Fulbright grant, he developed a research project that analyzed voting behavior and public opinion in the 2022 Brazilian presidential election. Before pursuing his Fulbright grant, he also supported election-monitoring initiatives at The Carter Center and research centers such as, Hacks/Hackers. Aleksei studied Economics at Emory University, graduating magna cum laude in 2020.

Location, Modality and Commute:

Our team operates on a hybrid basis with a schedule of three days in the office and two days of remote work. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are preferred in office days to have in-person meetings with staff. Mondays and Fridays are usually always remote.

Our office is located in the Arthur Kane Center at the University of Chicago Law School: 6020 S University Ave, Chicago, IL 60637.

Start and End Date:

The internship will start on June 9, 2025 and run until August 8, 2025.