field organizer 📣
Position overview
Next Up Action fund is hiring for a temporary, full time Field Organizer through the end of 2026. The Field Organizer (FO) is responsible for the day-to-day recruitment, instruction and management of volunteers, canvass teams, and launching the inaugural cohort of college campus organizers within our organization.
The Field Organizer will lead and execute volunteer fieldwork in the Portland Metro Area and other hubs of young people in Oregon, while also launching and leading the college campus organizing program. This position is in the field, outside talking to strangers, or on the phone, talking to strangers. The main tactics include: recruiting and launching volunteers to do voter contact, managing a cohort of young people who will be tabling on college campuses and community events, planning events, knocking doors, and phone banking. You’ll focus on organizing college campuses predominantly in the Portland Metro area and in Salem — supporting existing organizing efforts on campuses, and recruiting new student leaders. You’ll manage a small team of core leaders managing their fieldwork, helping out on the ground, holding them accountable to goals, and mentoring them through challenges.
You are an organizer at heart and love to connect with people to move them towards collective action. Applicants for the position must possess strong organizational and communication skills, the ability to meet deadlines, and the willingness to work evenings and weekends to accommodate student schedules and hosting canvasses and phone banks during election season. The Field Organizer will report directly to the Field Director.
about us
Since 2002, Next Up Action Fund (501c4) has been a political home to build upon the collective power and leadership of young people in order to secure a more just and equitable Oregon. Together, we envision an accountable and inclusive democracy where young people have the political power to create and sustain resourced, flourishing, and livable communities. We create lasting change through youth leadership development, issue advocacy, co-governance, and civic engagement. Our work is rooted in the belief that by investing in young people’s collective power we are able to build towards a liberated and just future.
We don’t only achieve victories; we see tangible change with youth boldly leading the way. For over 20 years, we’ve helped lead the way on innovative policies to create a more reflective and inclusive democracy in Oregon – now Oregon is one of the easiest states to vote in with over 93.7% of eligible Oregonians registered to vote.
We also specialize in youth voter engagement in Oregon and help turn out the vote for progressive candidates and ballot measures. We’ve helped elect dozens of candidates to statewide and local office by turning out 18 - 35 year olds to vote and ensuring Oregon is one of the most accessible states to vote in through our political advocacy work.
primary Responsibilities
recruitment and training
Recruiting volunteers to canvass and ensuring that recruitment goals are achieved throughout the duration of the volunteer program. This includes making phone calls, sending texts, and sending DMs to both new prospective volunteers or people previously involved with Next Up.
Regularly set up and hold 1:1’s with new volunteers
Ensuring the successful training and orientation of all volunteer canvassers, phonebankers, and college campus organizers.
volunteer canvasser and phone banker management
Manage the volunteer lifecycle around electoral seasons including recruiting, training, and retaining new and returning volunteers.
Providing volunteer canvassers + phone bankers with the positive leadership culture, resources, guidance and technical support required to succeed during each phase of the program while ensuring compliance with all Next Up and Next Up Action Fund policies and best practices.
Ensuring that all volunteer canvasses and phone banks are launched and completed in a timely, orderly fashion. During election season phonebanks typically occur Monday - Thursday after 5 pm, and canvasses are held on the weekend.
Assist the Field Director in editing scripts, cutting turf, pulling lists, and setting up phone banks and canvasses to be a successful and positive experience for volunteers.
Promoting the continued development of volunteer canvass teams in their day-to-day duties and responsibilities over the course of the program.
Responsible for voter contact goals, primarily to be executed through volunteer recruitment. This role will be expected to canvass multiple times a week.
launching and managing college campus organizing
Implementing, under the supervision of the Field Director, the complete vetting, interviewing and hiring of all successful applicants for the inaugural cohort of College Campus Organizing.
Launch campus organizers no later than mid-April 2026. The inaugural cohort will end November 2026.
Use organizational resources to create and implement trainings to onboard the new cohort.
Lead a team of 6-8 students on their campuses to collect thousands of pledges to engage cards, build community, identify issues on and off campus to advocate for and help elect leaders who share our values and pass progressive policies.
Manage the College Campus Organizers across Oregon. Train young leaders on how to run an effective outreach program on campuses, set organizing goals/benchmarks, and execute a plan to achieve those goals.
Regularly set up and hold 1:1’s with organizers.
accountability
Communicating all pertinent on-the-ground information to, and providing timely response to requests from, the canvassers under your direction.
Ensuring that volunteer canvass teams properly perform their roles and maintain accurate and reliable data.
Making sure all field data is entered accurately and in a timely manner.
Providing the Field Director with daily quantitative and qualitative reports as part of an ongoing evaluation of the program’s success.
Additional duties as assigned.
Key Qualifications
Friendly and outgoing; excited to meet new people, build relationships, and bring them into the movement.
At least (1) year previous organizing experience is preferred; however, other applicable organizing experience will be considered on a case by case basis. This can include things like issue, legislative, electoral campaigns, student and campus based organizing, either as a staff member or volunteer leader.
At least (3) months experience doing voter contact work such as canvassing, phone banking, and text banking.
Ready to go hard pledging young people to vote in their region to elect local progressive champions and pass ballot measures.
A history of working collaboratively and successfully with people and organizations from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds and a broad range of ideological positions and religious views.
Understand Racial Equity. You have a demonstrated understanding of the role that racial inequity plays in our society and in movement-building, and have demonstrated an ability to work and manage in ways that acknowledge and address, rather than reinforce, power dynamics and social disparities.
Understanding of what is at stake for young people in this election, and interested to learn what is at stake for others.
Proficient with Google tools such as Gmail and Google Drive (docs & sheets).
Strong written and oral communications skills.
Ability to work evenings and weekends as needed (will increase the weeks before election season in the spring and fall).
Preferred but not required: experience with EveryAction, MiniVan, Thrutalk/Thrutext, experience with coallitions, or other volunteer management and voter contact software.
Position logistics
Job Title: Field Organizer
Level: Entry Level
Apply By: January 18th, 2026 at 11:59 pm PST
Anticipated Start Date: February 2026
Anticipated Position End Date: December 2026 - with a possibility to extend depending on funding
Salary: $55,000.00/year to start, salaried, non-exempt
Reports To: Field Director
Duration: Full time (32 hour work week), temporary position until end of December 2026 with the potential for an extended position. Evening and weekend work required to accommodate student schedules and hosting canvasses and phone banks (increasing around election seasons in the spring and fall).
Benefits: Our benefits include excellent medical, vision, and dental coverage (with 100% of the premium covered by the employer), a 4-day (on average 32 hours) work week, a laptop computer, professional development funding, travel reimbursement, cell phone and work from home stipends, 401k retirement, generous PTO, and paid holidays including a two-week office closure in December.
Location: Our office is in Portland, Oregon. We have a hybrid work policy that requires full-time staff to work minimum 2 days per week in-person (either in the field or at the office) - this role will require frequent in person travel across the Portland Metro Area and bi-monthly travel to other areas like Salem, Eugene, and other hubs as assigned. Biannual team retreats and a few major events are required in-person as well.
Covid- 19: We are requiring all team members to be vaccinated for COVID-19 unless a team member has requested and received a health/disability or religious accommodation. For in-person meetings - applicants must follow all in person covid protocols outlined by the organization.
How to apply
Please send a cover letter and resume to hiring@nextuporegon.org and in the subject line put Field Organizer by January 18th, 2026. Those missing a resume, cover letter and application materials not submitted by the deadline will not be considered.
Please send a 1-page cover letter that includes your responses to the following questions:
How do you relate to Next Up Action Fund’s mission (found on our website)?
What interests you most about this position?
How would your skills and experiences (personal and professional) translate into success in this position?
equal opportunity statement
Next Up Action Fund is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, disability, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, reproductive health decisions, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.
We believe our work is stronger when it benefits from the experience, knowledge, and wisdom of people who have faced systemic barriers and strongly encourages Black, Indigenous, people of color, disabled people, people of diverse sexual orientations, gender expressions, and identities to apply.
