Please be advised that the application period for the March 2026 Externship Experience has now closed.
(Applicants, please note host’s preference for March 16–22; homestay is with an alum in the area)
About this externship, from Kendra: “I work in three intertwined areas: organizing local communities about climate and health issues, pressuring the regional electrical grid operator to make more climate-minded choices, and training groups in civil disobedience. First, the extern will join me as we negotiate with local communities to get their local ‘peaking’ electrical plants to close—fossil fuel burning plants that only turn on when it’s very hot or very cold and electrical use is high. The extern would join in learning about the climate and health impacts of these plants. This are lots of one-to-one conversations, small meetings and addressing community needs and understanding a theory of change. Second, I am part of a consumer group communicating with ratepayers about how the electrical grid operator works and interacts with federal and state agencies. This is an opportunity to learn about the electrical grid and points of leverage for change in that bureaucracy. Finally, I could arrange for the student to attend civil disobedience training. For more on this organization: www.350NH.org.”
There are several Grinnell alums in this town including one who runs the NH Youth Movement organization with whom 350 New Hampshire shares an office. The homestay would be with another couple who live across town. For each past externship we have had a Grinnell potluck so the extern can meet other alums. My coworkers do, in some sense, include the other organizations we share an office with. 350NH has two other climate organizers who do direct field work, one organizing director who focuses on electoral work, and an Executive Director who also is the director of our communications work. We work mostly remotely but would set up one-to one-meetings with other staff in addition to a weekly all-staff in-person meeting.
Returning host Kendra Ford ’93 (she/her) is going into her fourth year as a full time climate organizer. Before this she was a Unitarian Universalist minister for 20+ years (and hosted two ministry externs). Kendra brings that reverence and uncovering of essential connectedness to her organizing work. She writes, “I love this work for the same reasons I loved ministry, a wild variety of tasks and things to learn around a few grounding principles: the sacredness of life on earth and the power of people to change the course of history by both interrupting harm and working toward a vision of what’s possible. I spend my days talking with people, making banners, and doing tangible things to curb climate harms. I’m a middle aged, middle class, white, female, married to a man, mom of a 12-year-old nonbinary human. I got my English Literature degree from Grinnell in ’93, baked bread from ’93–’96, then I earned an MA in Creative Writing from San Francisco State in ’97 and a MDiv in Chicago in 2001. Lots of school, always weaving poetry, justice, and delight.”
The Extern would stay with another Grinnell alum a few blocks away. It is easy for Kendra and the student to commute together and the homestay family provides several of the meals, while Kendra provides the rest. With food, lodging, and local transportation covered, the student should budget for entertainment or exploring the area.
Students may contact me at this email ahead of submitting their application.
To apply for this externship, submit your application materials including the It’s a Match form, one-page résumé, and cover letter as specified in the resource: Externship Experience Information for Students
We recommend you make an appointment to review your application materials with a CLS adviser before submitting. Questions? Email: externships@grinnell.edu.