Community Canvasser

Position Summary

NYUC seeks energetic, outgoing, and dependable Community Canvassers to help grow our membership and identify parents, caregivers, would-be parents, grandparents, and community members who want to take action for universal child care. Canvassers will serve as a frontline point of contact between NYUC and communities across New York. Through door-to-door canvassing, street outreach, community events, schools, parks, playgrounds, transit hubs, child care centers, and other neighborhood locations, canvassers will speak directly with New Yorkers about their child care experiences, introduce them to NYUC's campaigns, collect information and stories, and invite people to become members and take action.

Key Responsibilities

• Conduct direct community outreach through door knocking, street canvassing, tabling, schools, parks, child care centers (when appropriate), community events, transit hubs, and other high-traffic locations to engage parents, caregivers, would-be parents, and community allies.
• Engage families in meaningful conversations about their child care experiences, including access, affordability, 2-K, 3-K, Pre-K, and other early childhood programs, to identify barriers, needs, and emerging community issues.
• Collect parent and caregiver stories that can strengthen NYUC's organizing, policy, advocacy, and communications efforts, and identify members interested in sharing their experiences publicly.
• Identify potential volunteer leaders and connect them to opportunities for deeper involvement, leadership development, and ownership of NYUC campaigns.
• Distribute and collect campaign materials, petitions, surveys, resource guides, and other organizing materials that support NYUC's campaigns and community outreach.
• Accurately collect, enter, and maintain organizing data, including contact information, outreach conversations, survey responses, membership recruitment, commitments, participation, and potential leaders identified.
• Participate in regular canvass debriefs, trainings, campaign briefings, and team meetings, sharing feedback and community insights that can strengthen organizing strategies and campaign messaging.
• Work collaboratively with Regional Organizers, NYUC staff, volunteers, and fellow canvassers while effectively communicating NYUC's mission, campaign goals, messaging, and calls to action.
• Maintain confidentiality and follow NYUC's policies regarding member information, data privacy, consent, and responsible collection of community stories.

Qualifications

We encourage applicants with community experience, organizing experience, or strong ties to the communities where they will be canvassing to apply.

Ideal candidates will have:

• Strong interpersonal and communication skills and comfort approaching and speaking with people they do not know.
• An outgoing, respectful, and persistent approach to community outreach.
• Interest in community organizing, advocacy, civic engagement, or social justice.
• Ability to listen to people's experiences and connect their concerns to opportunities for collective action.
• Reliability, punctuality, and ability to meet agreed-upon outreach goals.
• Ability to work independently in the field while also contributing to a team.
• Comfort using smartphones, tablets, texting applications, digital forms, and basic organizing technology.
• Ability to accurately collect and report outreach data.
• Willingness to work outdoors and travel throughout assigned neighborhoods.
• Availability during evenings and weekends, when parents and families are most likely to be available.
• Commitment to racial, economic, and gender equity.
• Passion for building parent power and advancing universal child care.

Previous canvassing, community organizing, voter outreach, labor organizing, customer service, sales, petitioning, or community engagement experience is preferred but not required. Training will be provided. Additional language skills are strongly encouraged, particularly languages commonly spoken in the communities where NYUC is organizing.

Schedule & Travel

Part-time, approximately 6-10 hours per week, with regular evening and weekend availability

This is a field-based position requiring regular travel throughout assigned neighborhoods and communities. Canvassing will frequently take place during afternoons, evenings, and weekends based on community availability and campaign needs.Canvassers may occasionally be asked to participate in larger NYUC events, trainings, mobilizations, or advocacy activities outside their primary canvassing area.Travel reimbursement will be provided for approved work-related expenses in accordance with NYUC policies.

Training & Development

NYUC will provide canvassers with training and ongoing coaching in:

• NYUC's mission and universal child care campaigns.
• Fundamentals of community organizing.
• Effective canvassing and one-on-one organizing conversations.
• Membership recruitment.
• Story collection.
• Leadership identification.
• Data collection and organizing technology.
• Mobilization and follow-up.
• Safety and appropriate conduct while canvassing.

Equal Opportunity

NYUC operates in partnership with the Fund for the City of New York (FCNY). FCNY maintains a firm commitment to equal opportunity employment and prohibits discrimination based on identity, background, disability, or any other legally protected status.NYUC strongly encourages applications from parents, caregivers, people directly impacted by child care challenges, people of color, immigrants, working-class New Yorkers, and individuals with deep connections to the communities in which we organize.

About New Yorkers United for Child Care

New Yorkers United for Child Care (NYUC) is an organization made up of parents, would-be parents, caregivers, and allies organizing to build the political power needed to win free, universal child care for all. In less than two years, we organized 10,000 New Yorkers to protect universal 3-K and Pre-K from major funding cuts, helped win Pre-K statewide, released a platform outlining a path toward universal child care, and won New York City’s first-ever pilot expansion of free universal care for children ages 0–2.

As we expand our organizing across New York State, we are building on these victories to secure and expand 2-K in New York City, win the funding necessary to make it universal, and ultimately bring 2-K statewide. At the same time, we are organizing to win fully funded, full-day, full-year 3-K and Pre-K statewide—building toward a truly universal child care system that provides affordable, accessible, high-quality care for every New York family, regardless of where they live. NYUC is building a grassroots organizing program that puts parents and caregivers at the center of this movement. Canvassers are an important part of that strategy.