As Congress considers remote voting and other measures to make the body work during the COVID-19 pandemic, a California-based non-profit has started the Congressional Digital Service Fellowship in order to bring additional digital expertise to the legislative branch.
TechCongress, founded by a former Hill staffer, has sent over 20 fellows to Congress as tech policy advisors since 2016. The organization is now looking for a cohort to provide technical expertise during the pandemic.
“We are looking to immediately recruit a small collaborative tech team for an eight month fellowship to help Congress manage this critical moment,” the TechCongress website said. The fellowship is scheduled to begin in the middle of June, according to the website.
The organization is looking for fellows to have at least five years of work or postgraduate study, experience working in or studying the technology sector, and experience on an Executive Branch Tech Team such as the U.S. Digital Service, 18F, Technology Transformation Services, Presidential Innovation Fellows is “a big, big plus,” the description said.
On March 10, the House voted overwhelmingly to adopt 29 recommendations to help modernize Congressional technology and processes. The recommendations, which came from the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress, included updating human resources systems and improving accessibility of House websites.
The Congressional Digital Service Fellowship lists helping implement recommendations from the committee and galvanizing the institution to build a Congressional Digital Service as goals of the fellowship. Applications for the fellowship are accepted until May 10.
