Voice Up Publishing Lived Experience Series Internship 100% Remote Internship Editorial & Storytelling Internship (Part-Time / Remote) Why This Internship Exists National and state data show youth and young-adult behavioral health as a population-level crisis, not a marginal concern. Nationally, roughly two in five high school students report persistent sadness or hopelessness (Verlenden et al., 2024). In Indiana, 47.0% of high school students reported feeling sad or hopeless for two or more weeks, and 25.2% seriously considered attempting suicide in the prior year (Indiana Department of Health, 2024). Research behind this same data points to a clear need: expanded pipelines for behavioral health professionals and early intervention models built on school connectedness, family engagement, and trauma-informed care. The Lived Experience Series and this internship supporting it exists to help people name and share their own relevant experience early, rather than years into adulthood, turning that experience into published insight others can learn from. About the Role Voice Up Publishing is seeking an intern to support the Lived Experience Publication Series, run through Voice Up's Lived Writing platform and tracked as a practicum placement. This internship is built for someone who wants hands-on experience in editorial development, storytelling, and the practical craft of helping people describe their own lives with clarity and precision. You'll work directly with contributors and the Voice Up editorial team inside Lived Writing's 8-session workshop structure, learning how lived experience is identified, shaped, and published grounded in the belief that personal experience carries real, describable value, and that the skill to articulate it is learnable. What You'll Do Support intake and onboarding conversations with new contributors Assist with drafting, structuring, and editing personal narrative submissions inside Lived Writing's workshop sequence Help contributors identify the most compelling and precise language for their story Contribute to the platform's combined grading process supporting the human-review half of the 40% AI / 60% instructor rubric Coordinate publication timelines and light production tasks across Voice Up's platforms Help document and refine the series' contributor workflow as it scales What You'll Gain Direct experience in editorial development and narrative nonfiction Training in a transferable skill: describing lived experience with precision and impact Automatic hour tracking and practicum credit through voiceuplearning.life, alongside Voice Up's other named practicum tracks A pathway into Voice Up Mentor Training & Certification (Certified Mentor / Lead Mentor / Master Trainer) for those who want to continue supporting future contributors Mentorship from Voice Up's editorial and publishing team A published body of work to include in your own portfolio Who We're Looking For Strong writer and active listener, comfortable working with sensitive personal material Interest in publishing, editorial work, narrative nonfiction, or storytelling for social impact Especially relevant for students in social work, public health, counseling, or education Lived Writing's prompt libraries are already aligned to clinical and public-health documentation standards Organized and able to manage several contributor projects at once Comfortable working independently in a remote, part-time structure Details Format: Part-time, 100% remote Commitment: Flexible schedule, project-based deliverable Reports to: Voice Up Publishing editorial leadership Compensation: Academic-credit internship or nominal weekly stipends based on demonstrated consistent effort and engagement To Apply Send a brief note about why this work interests you, along with a short writing sample, to . We're especially interested in hearing why the idea that lived experience has real value resonates with you. References Indiana Department of Health. (2024). 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Survey results. State of Indiana. Verlenden, J. V., et al. (2024). Mental health and suicide risk among high school students and protective factors Youth Risk Behavior Survey, United States, 2023. MMWR Supplements, 73(4). One reason conversations about AI and work feel so disorienting is that the pipeline from education to employment has not always been built around real contribution. Voice Up's canon-to-certification model tries to tighten that pipeline: publications become structured courses; courses become stacked credentials; credentials become demonstrated community benefit. In effect, it treats learning as something that can be both academically rigorous and socially useful while preparing people to remain valuable as tools evolve. The AI era will not reward people for being faster at routine outputs than a machine. It will reward people who can do what machines cannot: recognize meaning, build trust, decide what matters, and take responsibility for the impact of their work. And that may be the most important job skill of all.
