Civics Associate

Blue Haven Initiative is seeking an Associate for its Civics team.

Founded in 2012 by Liesel and Ian Simmons, Blue Haven Initiative (BHI) is a single-family office that invests for competitive returns and meaningful social and environmental impact. Civics is central to that long-term perspective: alongside our investment portfolio, BHI supports and directs policy, advocacy, and political projects aimed at building a stronger economy and a fairer democracy over the long run.

The Civics Associate will take real ownership across the full lifecycle of Blue Haven Civics’ policy, advocacy, and political projects, from early-stage research and stakeholder outreach through execution and ongoing relationship management. This role calls for excellent writing skills, sharp attention to detail, and the persistence to see complex, multi-stakeholder projects through to the finish. As those skills develop, the role carries explicit opportunities to lead project development from concept to execution. This is a growth path for someone driven and ambitious, not a fixed support role.

Working closely with the principal and the broader Civics team, this person will help design and run the systems that keep projects on track toward their impact goals. Current project priorities of the Civics team include advancing smart tax reform, making democracy fairer through innovative reforms, and increasing civic engagement and civic education opportunities for students.

Project & Stakeholder Support

• Take ownership of discrete workstreams, from framing the goal and mapping stakeholders through execution, as a direct path to building project development and management skills
• Conduct rigorous research, drive stakeholder outreach, and shape planning for new and ongoing projects, following each through with persistence
• Collaborate with team members and the principal to identify and pursue new project opportunities, and maintain persistent, high-quality engagement with grantees, political partners, and other stakeholders
• Grow into leading higher-level project work over time, with mentorship from senior-level staff

Communications

• Draft clear, persuasive talking points, decks, and advocacy materials for legislative and funder-facing meetings
• Develop briefs, outreach emails, and memos for the Civics team and principal, with the attention to detail that makes outreach land

Fundraising & Development

• Lead fundraising and development prospect research associated with civic engagement and political projects
• Prepare decks and meeting collateral, and research funding opportunities to support Civics priorities

Relationship & Data Management

• Support ongoing relationship development with key lawmakers and candidates, maintaining a database and records of engagement
• Support or lead maintenance and development of CRM and other relationship management systems

Operations & Team Support

• Direct the Civics internship program and manage 2–4 undergraduate interns per semester
• Help build operational capacity and assist or lead in developing and implementing organizational systems
• Support or lead tech innovation upgrades across the Civics team, including AI integration into workflows
• Pitch in on capacity needs as they arise, occasionally including scheduling or executive assistant functions, along with grant-making processes and compliance and vendor management

Qualifications

• 2–6 years of relevant work experience in policy, advocacy, campaigns, nonprofit, or philanthropic settings
• Excellent writing skills, with experience drafting clear, persuasive memos, briefs, or outreach materials for external audiences
• Driven and ambitious, with a track record of seeking out, and following through on, greater responsibility
• Comfortable working both independently and in support of senior staff, often on multiple concurrent projects
• Experience with or willingness to learn CRM/database systems
• Interest in campaign finance reform, civic engagement, and/or democracy-related policy issues
• Detail-oriented and organized, with strong project management instincts and the persistence to push projects through to completion
• Ability to manage and mentor undergraduate interns
• Comfort with AI tools and interest in applying them to team workflows a plus
• Fundraising experience or interest in developing fundraising skills a plus

Benefits and Compensation: BHI will provide compensation commensurate with work experience, the salary range for this role is: $75 – $90K. Benefits include healthcare, paid parental leave, retirement, philanthropic matching program, PTO, and remote work expense budget.