The Association of University Centers on Disability (AUCD) and Think College National Coordinating Center (NCC) are happy to announce this opportunity to learn and practice policy advocacy skills is once again available to students and staff of higher education programs for students with intellectual disability. If you or someone you know works for or attends a college or univeristy program, you are qualified to apply to be a Think College Policy Advocate (TCPA)*.
Think College Policy Advocate teams will participate in 8 online trainings and attend an in-person event March 9-12, 2025 in Washington, DC. The TCPA training offers the opportunity for passionate advocates, self-advocates, experts, and professionals in the field to come together and learn about key issues that affect them most. In addition to learning and training, attendees will have an opportunity to meet with their Members of Congress on Capitol Hill.
A travel stipend will be provided to each trainee to help cover hotel, transportation and meals while in Washington, DC.
Up to 10 teams, comprised of one student and one staff member, will be selected. Teams must be interested in learning more about public policy and be able to commit fully to the following online and in-person activities:
- Participate in a series of on-line trainings and meetings to learn about policy advocacy and prepare for visits to Capitol Hill.
- Travel to Washington, DC, on March 9-12, 2025 for in-person training and Hill visits.
- Schedule meetings with Members of Congress and/or their staff for the time you are in Washington, DC.
- Following the in-person meeting, teams must commit to doing 3 activities from the list below:
- Subscribe to AUCD’s weekly newsletter on policy in Washington D.C., Disability Policy News, or AUCD’s YouTube series Tuesdays with Liz, and respond to Action Alerts throughout the year.
- Host a policymaker (federal, state, local) at your postsecondary education program either in-person or virtually.
- Develop a “leave behind” document that educates your policymakers in Washington D.C. about your program, stories about students who attend it, and statistics about its impact.
- Participate in a Think College Emerging Advocates call to learn about and discuss a topic of interest to the group and the team.
- Draft and submit an op/ed piece or letter about your program to the editor to your local paper.
- Participate in an interview with Think College or AUCD about your experience that can be used to promote advocacy. It can be used by your college too.
- Share your public policy experience with other students and faculty at your postsecondary program.
The complete description, application form, and template for a recommendation letter are all available in on our website. Applications are due by May 17, 2024. Teams will be informed if they are accepted into the 2024-25 TCPA training on or about June 21, 2024.
If you have any questions, please contact Caroline Jurisich at AUCD: cjurisich@aucd.org.
*Individuals who have already participated in TCPA training are not eligible to apply again. However, we do accept applications from different individuals from the same college or university.