Good Trouble Fellow
In 2027, A Picture's Worth (APW) leads Collaboration at the Borderlands, a year-long civic initiative marking the 25th anniversary of Cincinnati's Collaborative Agreement — built on the belief that the region's most transformative work has always started with communities that organized.
The Good Trouble Fellow will hold a seat on the Borderlands steering committee beginning fall 2026, build and lead a crew of young people from across the region, and run a public campaign to find, honor, and write about the people making good trouble in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky right now. This is not an internship where you shadow someone. You'll convene rooms, make editorial decisions, and put work in front of the public — with real support behind you.
What you'll do
- Serve on the Borderlands steering committee as a full voting member, participating in the Youth Engagement area and monthly project work.
- Recruit and lead a youth crew (fall). Build a crew of five to eight young people through partner pipelines — CPS, Xavier, UC, NKU, WordPlay, and other committee organizations — and convene them regularly.
- Run the “good troublemakers” nomination campaign (winter–spring). Plan and launch a public call for nominations of living Cincinnatians and Northern Kentuckians doing John Lewis's kind of work, in partnership with Cincinnati Opera and its audience. Lead the crew in reviewing nominations and selecting honorees for the Drum Major recognition.
- Write and publish (spring). Guide each crew member — and yourself — through profiling one honoree. Profiles publish at borderlandcollaborations.org, in the July Dispatch from the Borderland, and through CityBeat coverage, with placement at the Opera's premiere weekend as the goal.
- Participate in APW's Public Narrative workshop with your crew as the kickoff to the writing work, and help adapt what you learn for other young people.
- Keep good records. Track crew participation, nominations, and consent documentation in line with APW's ethical, trauma-informed storygathering practices.