Paid, full-time service position in local NC government

Lead for North Carolina at the UNC School of Government is a paid, full-time fellowship program in local government for recent college graduates. We are looking for community change agents to work on transformative community projects. Projects include hurricane recovery and resiliency, economic development, citizen engagement initiatives, affordable housing, public health, and more!

Apply here by the April 15th deadline to join the Lead for North Carolina 2022-2023 Fellowship cohort. To see a list of placement sites across North Carolina, click here.

Selected fellows will participate in the Lead for North Carolina Summer Academy at the UNC School of Government in July and begin their service year in August. The UNC School of Government is the nation’s largest university-based local government training center. You’ll work with our faculty and staff and join a cohort of 25 other fellows looking to enact systemic change in rural and economically distressed communities across the state.

You’ll have an impact far beyond what you could ever imagine in a large city. You’ll write grants for millions of dollars, help communities rebuild after hurricanes, increase the number of affordable housing units, attract new economic development, and reimagine communities in dire need of help. You’ll be a part of a movement of young leaders looking to reinvent our public institutions. The skills you gain in this fellowship program will set you on for a path of success – whether graduate school or full-time employment, Lead for NC will jumpstart your career in the public sector.

We need you. Approximately 70% of local government leaders are eligible to retire in North Carolina. Nationwide 7% of local government leaders are people of color and only 25% are women. This is exacerbated in rural and economically distressed communities. For too long success meant leaving these communities, it should also mean returning.

Fellows receiving a stipend of $33,000, a SEGAL Education Grant for $6,500, health insurance, student loan forbearance, graduate credits from UNC-Chapel Hill, and executive coaching and training. Most alumni receive competitive scholarship offers to their top graduate school choices or receive full-time job offers from their local government at the conclusion of the fellowship.

Link to Download Handout or watch this brief video to learn more about the fellowship.

Please contact Dylan Russell at russell@sog.unc.edu with any questions or concerns.