Summer 2025 - Intern, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning

Who we are:

The Vera Institute of Justice is powered by hundreds of advocates, researchers, and policy experts working to transform the criminal legal and immigration systems until they’re fair for all. Founded in 1961 to advocate for alternatives to money bail in New York City, Vera is now a national organization that partners with impacted communities and government leaders for change. We develop just, antiracist solutions so that money doesn’t determine freedom; fewer people are in jails, prisons, and immigration detention; and everyone is treated with dignity. For more information, visit vera.org.

Vera has a staff of 224 people, is headquartered in Brooklyn, New York and has offices in Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, and New Orleans. We are an equal opportunity employer with a commitment to diversity in the workplace. We expect our staff to embody respect, independence, collaboration, commitment, anti-racism, and equity—both in our outward-facing work and the internal culture of our workplace. We value a range of experiences in people’s educational backgrounds and encourage people who have been directly impacted by the criminal justice system to apply.

About the team:

The Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) team is a part of Vera’s Impact Pipeline, ensuring that strategic learning and continuous improvement are integrated into how projects and initiatives operate. The MEL team partners with colleagues across Vera to define meaningful impact goals and milestones, co-create measurement and assessment tools, and provide regular and actionable feedback to inform and refine strategies. Our approach to MEL is collaborative and equitable: we strive to evaluate and learn in partnership with colleagues across the institute, community partners, and people directly impacted by our work. We support an internal culture of learning, reflection, and strategic decision-making and help build MEL capacity and adaptive learning skills across the institute.   

About the role:

The MEL Intern provides capacity support to the Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) team. This position will focus on supporting our work with Vera’s varying initiatives and projects, with additional experience getting to know how monitoring, evaluation, and learning is operationalized at Vera, and helping us build on opportunities to deepen and expand our organizational capacity. 

The learning goals of this internship include fostering skills in and an understanding of project management, strategic planning, and program development & evaluation tools, practices, and activities.

The MEL Intern will work under the supervision of the Director of MEL and in close collaboration with the rest of the MEL team. 

What you'll do:

Supporting the MEL team in their work with initiatives  

• Assist the processing and documentation mature initiative’s history and work
• Attending and record keeping of learnings for Stage 2 project’s Reflective Practice Meetings
• Collaborate with Impact Pipeline team members to develop a rubric tool for project assessments 

Gain a foundational understanding of theories of change and monitoring, evaluation, and learning frameworks and how they apply to work at Vera 

• Become familiar with commonly referenced documents (produced both in and out of Vera) that shape the work of the MEL team
• Summarize and organize resources into easily accessible formats to be used by the MEL team 

Assist with ad hoc projects as they relate to MEL 

• Support learning culture efforts
• Work with the MEL team on identifying opportunities to actualize the vision for the future of MEL at Vera
• Other ad hoc duties as needed to support the MEL team 

What qualifications are we looking for?

One or more of the following: 

• Currently enrolled in an undergraduate program;
• Interest in program monitoring, evaluation, and learning;
• Demonstrated commitment to strategy building for social, political, or policy change; and/OR Lived experience as a person directly impacted by the criminal legal system 

Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities you'll bring: 

• A demonstrated commitment to racial equity and social justice;
• The ability to work both independently and with others efficiently and effectively; and
• Strong writing and communications skills. 

Technical knowledge we need you to be prepared to use:

• Proficient with Microsoft Office Suite or similar software – PowerPoint  

Location:

Please note this role will report to our Brooklyn, NY office. Vera interns and employees adhere to a hybrid schedule and are in-office on an alternating schedule. Full-time positions generally amount to 10 days per month. Part-time positions generally amount to 5 days per month.

Schedule:

The intern should be available to work up to 15 hours per week during the summer. The dates will be between June 2nd and August 8th, with some flexibility to accommodate personal and academic schedules.

Compensation:

The compensation range for internships is $16.00 - $25.00 per hour. Actual compensation will vary depending on factors including but not limited to experience and performance. Applicants may choose to receive academic credit. For those who need to earn academic credit, Vera will gladly assist in working with the school or program to make arrangements and meet requirements.

How to apply:

Please submit cover letter and resume. In your cover letter, please explain why you are passionate about criminal justice reform and what you hope to gain from this internship.

Applications may also be faxed to:

ATTN: People, Place, and Culture / Summer 2025 - Intern, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning
Vera Institute of Justice
34 35th St, Suite 4-2A, Brooklyn, NY 11232
Fax: (212) 941-9407
Please use only one method (online, mail or fax) of submission.
No phone calls, please. Only applicants selected for interviews will be contacted.

Vera is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without unlawful discrimination based on race, color, creed, national origin, sex, age, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, military status, prior record of arrest or conviction, citizenship status, current employment status, or caregiver status. 

Vera works to advance justice, particularly racial justice, in an increasingly multicultural country and globally connected world. We value diverse experiences, including with regard to educational background and justice system contact, and depend on a diverse staff to carry out our mission. 

For more information about Vera, please visit www.vera.org.