Policy & Advocacy Associate

The Coalition of Asian American Leaders (CAAL) envisions a just and joyful future where all Minnesotans, regardless of background, have the power to shape decisions that affect us and can live with dignity in thriving and caring communities. CAAL is a network of Asian American leaders whose mission is to harness our collective power across ethnicities, age groups, and sectors to improve the lives of communities by connecting, learning, and acting together. We believe our democracy thrives when all communities are visible, included, and fully engaged in key systemic decisions that impact our lives. We embrace the diversity of our community and believe that if we can work together, moving beyond silos, we help ensure a more prosperous future for all Minnesotans. We seek a Policy and Advocacy Associate who will organize community leaders, advocating for policy changes at the local, state, and federal level of government and actively work to build cross-sector cross generational, and cross-racial partnerships.

Responsibilities

• Develop policy initiatives, engage, and organize stakeholders, and advocate for CAAL’s policy priorities in education, economics, immigration, combating hate/anti-Asian hate, community safety, voter engagement, and other issue campaign initiatives as necessary.
• Organize events like the Day at the Capitol, support other Days at the Capitol, and press conferences for legislative priorities.
• Support the development of all policy and lobbying strategies, incorporating best practices in anticipation of fast-paced changes in the political, electoral, and public policy environment.
• Advocate for CAAL’s position on pending legislation at the State Legislature through lobbying, written, and verbal testimony.
• Engage with policymakers at the U.S. and State Capitol and be present at the legislature.
• Work with units of government, such as the state, county, city, and school boards.
• Develop relationships and organize CAAL’s network leaders, local coalitions, and community partners.
• Prepare, review, and edit research memos, briefs, reports, projects, and presentations in a variety of formats to engage a diverse range of constituents.
• Support the Policy and Advocacy Team to build social media presence as thought leaders and policy experts.
• Other duties as assigned.

Requirements

• Master’s or professional degree in public policy, public administration, advocacy and political leadership, or related field.
• Minimum of three years of policy or legislative experience
• Minimum of three years organizing experience on political or issue campaigns
• Represent CAAL’s perspective and position in policy‑making spaces.
• Confidence in writing, reading, and summarizing policy research, community engagement feedback, and CAAL’s position.
• Experience in at least one of the following areas: education, economics, immigration, anti‑Asian hate/combating hate, community safety and/or other policy issues impacting Asian Americans.
• Willingness and availability to work on evenings and weekends when community is available with ability to travel, including occasional overnight, and multi‑day travel.
• Excellent judgment and creative problem‑solving skills, including negotiation, and conflict resolution
• Demonstrates experience navigating a multi‑partisan and highly political government system with emphasis on the Minnesota legislative process.
• Demonstrates experience navigating a multi‑partisan and highly political government system with emphasis on the Minnesota Legislative process
• Strong communication skills, with emphasis on written communication.
• Proficiency with office technology and information systems, including Microsoft Excel, Word, with an ability to and willingness to learn new software tools.
• Willingness and availability during heavy periods of work at the Minnesota Legislature, which will require evenings and some weekend commitments.
• Access to reliable daily transportation to the State Capitol, other local units of government, and a variety of meetings in the Metro Area.
• This position will require some state‑wide and national travel.

Salary and Benefits

This is an exempt position with a salary range starting at $50,000. CAAL offers all employees full health, vision, and dental coverage, workers comp, long term disability, basic life insurance, a 401K retirement plan, 10 days of holiday, and generous paid time off.

To Apply

Please email your resume to View email address on click.appcast.io. Please include “Policy and Advocacy Associate” in the subject line. CAAL is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate our rich diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.