The Designmatters Fellowship program embeds ArtCenter students in impactful organizations to work on social innovation design projects and initiatives for one full academic term.
Spring 2019 Designmatters Fellowship
Mayor Garcetti’s Innovation Team – City Hall, Los Angeles
January 14 to April 19, 2019
About the City of Los Angeles Innovation Team:
The City of Los Angeles was one of 14 cities selected to participate in Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Innovation Teams program in December 2014. Now, there are nearly 30 Innovation Teams (i-teams) worldwide as part of a growing movement for innovation in government. I-teams function as in-house innovation consultants, moving from one mayoral priority to the next, working in the Mayor’s Office.
i-teams leverage data-driven research and work closely with internal and external City partners to tackle cities’ biggest, most pressing challenges. The Los Angeles i-team has worked on initiatives like improving access to affordable housing to reduce homelessness, creating inclusive neighborhood revitalization to address the negative impacts of gentrification, increasing diversity in police hiring, and increasing the number of accessory dwelling units to increase housing options. The team is now working to define the future of work and the ways in which the City of Los Angeles support Angelenos in preparing for the jobs and opportunities of the future knowing that technology, expectations and demographics are rapidly changing.
It is suggested that interested candidates review the Bloomberg Philanthropies Innovation Team Playbook for additional context and background on the i-team mission and methodology. i-team fellows are expected to be able to be flexible and quickly navigate the learning curve on a wide variety of topics as needed.
About the Fellowship
The City is seeking an ArtCenter student to serve as the i-Team’s Designmatters Fellow. By working with the Mayor’s Office the i-team’s third project is to help evaluate how the City can help prepare residents for the future of work. Working closely with the Design Lead and the i-team at large, the Designmatters Fellow will develop community engagement curriculum, facilitate design workshops, generate design solutions, and prototype ideas to test solutions as a process for design research.
The Designmatters Fellow will receive:
• An $11,000 Stipend
• Up to 6 Units of Academic Credit
• Professional Development and Mentorship
• The opportunity to apply your talent and education on a cutting-edge, award winning public sector innovation team
Who Can Apply?
Undergraduate students in their 6th Term and above and graduate-level students from across all disciplines, (including students graduating this term,) are encouraged to apply.
Ideal Fellow Skills and Experience:
– Understanding of design research, design strategy, and design thinking process
– Fluency in visual design and user experience design
– A self-starter and entrepreneurial problem-solver who is enthusiastic to advocate for design process in government
– Ability to translate complex data sets and issues into persuasive visual messaging
– Ability to work collaboratively on a multidisciplinary team
– Interest in community engagement and using design to influence policy and serve the public
– Ability to navigate ambiguity
– Applicants with previous work experience are preferred
How to Apply
Fill out the online application by 5:00pm on Monday, November 26
https://goo.gl/forms/D263HQOhpSRFDlJs2
Designmatters will follow up with next steps. Good luck!
[Photo: Dan Monick]