Health Equity Intern

MACDC Health Equity Intern

The Massachusetts Association of Community Development Corporations (MACDC) is an association of mission‐driven community development organizations dedicated to working together and with others to create places of opportunity where people of diverse incomes and backgrounds access housing that is affordable, benefit from economic opportunities, and fully participate in the civic life of their community. We operate as a membership organization with 63 CDC members and 34 associate members. CDCs are nonprofit, community‐based organizations working to revitalize lower‐income communities and support lower‐income people in middle‐ and upper‐income neighborhoods and towns across the state. MACDC, founded in 1982, operates with an annual $1.9 million budget. Ten people work at MACDC, as well as part‐time staff and interns. For more information, please visit www.macdc.org.  

MACDC Health Equity Intern Description

The Health Equity Internship is an exciting opportunity for a student or recent graduate to learn about community development, a key social determinant of health, and to serve as an important contributor to MACDC’s health equity work. Community Development Corporations (CDCs) in Massachusetts are increasingly engaging in work in the health space and framing their work in the economic development space from a health equity lens. MACDC’s Health Equity work supports Massachusetts CDCs work in this space. In 2022 MACDC was awarded a six-year grant, from the Massachusetts Community Health and Healthy Aging Funds, to support our Housing Quality and Health Equity Initiative (“The Equity Initiative”). The Equity Initiative tackles poor housing quality and associated housing instability, and addresses the corresponding racial health inequities, in selected Massachusetts’ Gateway Cities, and statewide.

The intern will report to and provide program support to MACDC’s Director of Health Equity and will work closely with MACDC’s Director of Housing.  In addition to assisting in the fourth year of the Equity Initiative, the intern will support day-to-day operations of MACDC’s health equity work. 

Responsibilities

The Equity Initiative

• Support implementation of the Equity Initiative, including MACDC’s local community engagement work in three Gateway Cities, and statewide research and advocacy, which may include:
  • Assisting in planning and participating in quarterly meetings with stakeholders in each city
  • Identifying and engaging with additional stakeholders, including institutional partners.
  • Supporting engagement with stakeholders to identify housing quality problems, their health manifestations on households of color, and their impact on housing stability.
  • Working with local stakeholders to support local housing quality improvement programs
  • Identifying additional opportunities for stakeholders to learn about the health impacts of addressing housing quality issues.
  • Coordinating the provision of interpretation and translation services
• Support the operations of the Housing Quality and Health Task Force, a group that meets every other month, to provide guidance for the work of the Equity Initiative.
• Conduct research into topics related to the Equity Initiative, as requested.
• Support statewide and local advocacy efforts to secure additional resources for housing quality improvements.
• Assist other activities of the Equity Initiative as needed.

Other Health Equity work

• Support the operations of MACDC’s Health Equity Committee, a group that meets every other month to learn from one another and outside experts and to strategize about work in the health equity space.
• Contribute to MACDC’s blog by writing articles about the convergence of community development and health equity.
• Assist in other health equity activities as needed.

Skills and Experience

• Graduate student, recent graduate, or individual with relevant work experience in public health, housing rehabilitation, public policy, or related field.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office.
• Excellent communication skills, including the ability to communicate effectively and professionally with diverse stakeholders.
• Excellent writing including the ability to write articles and blogs.
• Solid research skills, including the ability to find and analyze data sources.
• Demonstrated ability to represent an organization in public settings.
• Ability to manage multiple tasks simultaneously.
• Ability to work collaboratively and independently.
• Preferred: Knowledge about housing quality and/or health impacts of poor housing quality.

Hours and Compensation

This Health Equity Intern position begins in December 2025 and goes through at least May 2026, with the option to extend through the summer and perhaps beyond. The intern will work with MACDC’s Director of Health Equity to determine a schedule approximating 20 hours per week, to be completed during business hours (Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm). While the majority of the intern’s work can be done remotely, the intern will be expected to be on-site in our downtown Boston office at least one day per week, which will not be Friday. The intern will be compensated at $26/hour.

To Apply: 

Email resume, cover letter, and one writing sample (either as Word or PDF attachments) to Elana Brochin, Director of Health Equity at elanab@macdc.org.

Applications submitted by Monday November 10th will receive first consideration. No phone calls, please.

MACDC seeks to create an inclusive workplace where all people are welcomed regardless of their ethnicity, race, income, age or abilities. We seek to create an organization and community development field that is reflective of the people we serve.