About the course
This is a crash course in “grassroots organizing” that will cover an introductory set of skills for community organizers. Based on the work of Marshall Ganz, this organizing framework is rooted in building relationships to generate the power our communities need in order to achieve the change we want.
Over the course of three and a half weeks, participants will have the opportunity to develop their public narratives, learn how to build relationships and structure teams, strategize and power map a campaign plan, and draft a timeline for execution.
Who is this course for?
- Open to new things: Participants should be movement-focused people who want to learn a framework for organizing. We welcome folks who are totally new to organizing, or who have been doing organizing for some time but don’t feel like they have a good structure for it.
- Relational & people-focused: Ideal participants are excited to build relationships, to invest in the leadership of others, and to build teams of purpose-driven leaders.
- Involved in movement work: We seek to support organizers who are currently part of an organizing effort or are seeking to build one alongside others they know.
Ideal applicants come from all walks of life, from seasoned organizers and campaigners looking to sharpen their skills, to beginners who are passionate about organizing and want to start their learning journey. Here are some attributes shared by all our applicants:
Technical Aptitude: Whether you have experience in organizing online or not, we are interested in organizers and campaign practitioners who want to rapidly develop their technical skills.
Organizing Insight: You don’t need to be a professional politico, but we’re looking for applicants with experience doing organizing work on the ground. That work can be tied to grassroots, electoral, and/or issue organizing. We seek to support organizers who are currently part of a campaign effort or are seeking to build one.
Dedication to Inclusive Politics and Intersectional Solutions: At re:power, we center race, class, gender and sexuality across all our trainings—it’s part of our practice of inclusive politics. We want organizers to be open to new ideas regarding it and to the ideas and contributions from their fellow organizers who will reflect our diverse communities.
Course Expectations
This is an interactive course. We ask participants to write in the chat box, share verbally, and participate in breakout group discussion. We understand that folks have a lot going on though, so if you are not able to participate in a breakout discussion you can let the tech moderator know. We encourage, but do not require, participants to turn on video during breakout discussions.
Questions? Please contact us at grassroots@repower.org
