The Council for Court Excellence (CCE) is a non-profit organization that brings people together to conduct research, educate, and advocate to make D.C.’s unique legal systems more just, equitable, and accountable to the community. We envision a D.C. where individuals, organizations, and government work together to build safe and thriving communities with a trusted legal system that meets the needs of its people, protects their rights, and promotes dignity and justice for all. CCE’s work focuses on the adult criminal legal system, youth justice system, D.C. courts, and civil justice/access to justice issues.

The CCE Justice Education internship program provides a unique opportunity for exceptional undergraduate students to contribute directly and tangibly to District-wide justice reform. Ideal candidates will be passionate about systemic change within the justice system, public education, and outreach and must have outstanding writing, editing, and organizational skills.

The CCE Justice Education internship program provides a unique opportunity for exceptional undergraduate students to contribute to District-wide legal system reform. Ideal candidates will be passionate about systemic change within the justice system, community education, and outreach and must have outstanding writing, editing, and organizational skills. 

General Responsibilities   

Justice Education Interns at the Council for Court Excellence will participate in hands-on public outreach efforts that directly impact the D.C. community. CCE's justice education work includes developing guides, resources, and practical tools for D.C. residents to help them understand the complex nature of the legal system, disseminating those resources as widely as possible, and doing outreach and education to D.C. residents, organizations and businesses. Specifically, interns can expect to: 

• Draft website and social media content, and develop outreach materials like one-pagers, flyers, etc. 
• Research and draft educational guides to increase community understanding of the civil, criminal, and juvenile justice systems and to improve outcomes 
• Support planning and implementation of educational programs, including logistics support, drafting scripts, and creating trainings 
• Track and lead outreach work to various community partners including small businesses, nonprofit advocacy organizations, workforce development organizations, job readiness programs, etc. 
• Provide substantive and logistical assistance to certain CCE committees through attending meetings, researching project leads, and reviewing literature 
• Assist with project committee’s report release events and other special events as needed.   

Undergraduate students are eligible for CCE internships, though we also welcome graduate students. Applicants should have a background in public education and/or communications work and an interest in one or more of the following areas: public communications, civic engagement, government, journalism, or public relations. Applicants must be eligible to work in the United States. Justice-impacted applicants are encouraged to apply. 

For students who are not receiving course credit or other funding for their internship, CCE will provide interns with a stipend of up to $2500 depending on hours worked. CCE also covers public transportation costs to and from required meetings or events.   

Availability   

CCE offers hybrid work opportunities (at our office located in downtown Washington, DC, in a location of your choice, or some combination); we often host events in the office or in DC, so we prefer locally based interns. We offer three internship sessions that align with the academic calendar: Spring (from January to May), Summer (from June to August), and Fall (from September to December). Interns must be able to work 15 to 20 hours a week or more and we will work with each candidate to find a schedule that works based on their classes and other obligations. For best placement results, please apply before the closing deadline listed below for each semester. 

Application Procedure and Deadline 

Prospective interns should submit one PDF document under the "resume" field containing all of the following: a cover letter indicating interest and your dates and hours per week of availability, a résumé, and a brief writing sample on any topic (no more than three pages and an excerpt is fine). If you need to create or combine PDFs, please use the website ILovePDF.com. 

Application deadlines: 

• Summer – April 1 
• Fall – August 1 
• Spring – November 1  

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.