Program Officer, Democracy

About the organization

The Andrew Carnegie Foundation, originally established as Carnegie Corporation of New York, was founded in 1911 by Andrew Carnegie. Today, our funding supports the issues that Carnegie considered most important: education, democracy, and peace. Our grantmaking is grounded in Andrew Carnegie's vision to do "real and permanent good in the world."

The National Program unites two portfolios around the idea that education and democracy reinforce each other: an educated, civically engaged public sustains a healthy democracy and public trust in institutions. The Education portfolio prepares young people for citizenship and rewarding careers by investing in high schools, colleges and universities, and nonprofits that promote upward mobility and civic participation. The Democracy portfolio backs nonpartisan work to strengthen democratic institutions, including rule-of-law protections, structural electoral reform, election administration, immigrant civic integration, civic learning, and collaboration across differences.

About the role

The Andrew Carnegie Foundation is seeking a Program Officer to grow the National Program by identifying, developing, and recommending funding opportunities in democracy and elections. The ideal candidate will be well versed in research and possess extensive knowledge of the field to contribute to the program's strategy, identify promising potential grantees and partnerships, and manage a portfolio of grants and other projects under the direction of the Program Director.

Responsibilities

• Advance National Program's goals that focus on structural reforms to American elections (such as proportional representation and ranked-choice voting).
• Stay current on trends, emerging research, public policy developments, and practice in elections and democracy, and how they connect to the program's strategy.
• Proactively identify prospective grantees and partners and assess proposals received by the Foundation.
• Review and strengthen proposals; assess budgets, staffing, workplans, and expected outcomes.
• Present funding recommendations with clear-eyed critique of strengths, weaknesses, and risks.
• Serve as a spokesperson for the portfolio, the program, and the foundation: represent Carnegie externally; speak and publish on relevant issues; and organize and participate in meetings, conferences, and other field-wide activities.
• Support the ongoing improvement of the Foundation's strategy.
• Conduct site visits; support and monitor active grants, engaging grantees directly and assessing progress and impact.
• Coordinate across education and democracy work, including on AI's role in either field.
• Contribute to a collaborative, high-performing team and provide guidance and support to colleagues as appropriate.
• Take on other duties as needed.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree required; advanced degree in political science, public policy, or a related field preferred.
• Deep grounding in the research, policies, and reform efforts in democracy and elections.
• A strong professional network and demonstrated ability to build trusted relationships with researchers, practitioners, funders, policymakers, and other leaders in the field.
• Recognized expertise through publications and speaking experience preferred.
• Proven ability to collaborate with people and organizations within the field.
• Exceptional writing: precise, persuasive, board- and public-ready.
• A knack for turning scattered data and research into sharp recommendations.
• Working fluency with AI tools and their application to grantmaking and internal workflows preferred.
• Strong strategic thinking, leadership, presentation, and listening skills.
• Willingness to travel.
• Work onsite.
• 8+ years of relevant experience.

Pay

Salary range: $145,000–$160,000. New hires are typically brought into the organization between the minimum to midpoint of the salary hiring range posted depending on qualifications, experience, and internal equity.