The Worker Ownership State Advocacy Fellowship (WOSA) is a program of the U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives that equips and supports worker owners as advocates and spokespeople for worker co-op initiatives, particularly in their home state. In our second year of the fellowship, we are pleased to be able to expand the cohort as well as increase stipends for participation.
Apply for the WOSA Fellowship now
Here’s what you need to know:
When:
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- The fellowship will take place from September 2022 – February 2023, with an orientation session in late August 2022.
- The fellowship includes a few types of sessions:
- [2] 60 minute Orientation meetings, in which fellows will be introduced or re-familiarized with local and state organizing work.
- [6] 120 minute All-fellow sessions, where collaborative learning and peer-sharing happens. Fellows will hear from experienced advocates and people who work directly to advance cooperatives through legislative action.
- State meetings, where discussions will focus on state-specific topics and organizing at the state and local level. Cadence of meetings dependent on state.
- At least 3 USFWC Policy and Advocacy Council calls: These USFWC membership council meetings are held twice a month, and all fellows will be required to attend at least 3.
- Fellowship final presentation at the Worker Co-op Policy Pulse
Who:
- Two worker owners will be selected per state. Each fellow will be awarded an $800 stipend to offset the cost of labor for participation. This fellowship is open to worker-owners or employees of a worker co-op only.
- Worker owners from any state are invited to apply. The states selected will be chosen based on interest, regional organizing support, concentration of worker co-ops, and opportunity for political engagement. The USFWC works with its regional partners for recruitment and consideration of candidates for the fellowship.
- At this time, the fellowship is only available to English-speakers. We remain committed to language justice and creating space for advocacy engagement and updates at our Worker Co-op Policy Pulse sessions for both English and Spanish-speaking cooperators. We hope to open up this fellowship to Spanish-speakers next year – please help us to fund this program by donating to the USFWC!
Apply for the WOSA Fellowship now
Check out the presentations from the 2021-2022 WOSA Fellowship Cohort
