We’re Recruiting Volunteer Blog Writers!

The Volunteer Blog Writer plans and develops posts for the Innovation Hub’s blog as part of an engaging community of writers. Students with great writing experience who wish to build storytelling skills will be particularly interested in this role. Opportunities to grow with the Innovation Hub team and engage in our work will be offered with this role. To learn more about the Innovation Hub’s work and expectations for our standard of writing, check out our blog: http://blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca/innovationhub/blog/

Responsibilities:

• Attend weekly drop-in “Writer’s Circles” to co-work on blog posts with peers in the Innovation Hub community
• Collaborate with two Blog Editor & Digital Content Writers to pitch blog posts that embody and guide the direction of the Innovation Hub blog
• Research and showcase examples of how design thinking impacts the U of T community and creates change on the broader global stage
• Use storytelling to highlight student experiences at the Innovation Hub and in the broader U of T student community
• Interview U of T students, staff, and faculty to tell stories with empathy

Features & Benefits:

• Receive CCR credit for attending a minimum number of Writer’s Circles throughout the year and submitting at least two blog posts per term
• Work closely with the Innovation Hub blog writing team to receive timely, personalized feedback on your writing and goal setting throughout the year
• Attend weekly Friday professional development workshops offered by the Innovation Hub team on design thinking, qualitative methods, and conducting equitable research
• Join in Innovation Hub community socials to network, build skills, and have fun with like-minded student peers
• Learn more about other opportunities at the Innovation Hub, including ongoing projects, work study positions, and leadership roles

Qualifications:

• Exceptional written, copyediting, and editorial skills to translate complex stories into fun, engaging, and empowering website and blog content
• Highly creative and strong storytelling and story listening abilities that conceptualize diverse perspectives and experience
• Prior leadership and/or community building experience or a strong desire to build these skills
• Experience using online communication tools (e.g., WordPress) and social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, TikTok, etc.)
• Positive energy and enthusiasm to learn in a fast-paced environment
• Project management skills in developing blog schedules and outreach strategies
• Ability to effectively organize and coordinate multiple and often competing deadlines and priorities with many different team members
• Strong desire to build and enhance the student experience at U of T through digital engagement
• Ability and interest to learn about creating accessible content and utilizing plain language to capture content succinctly
• Familiarity with qualitative methods, design thinking and/or empathy-based research is an asset

We invite you to write an Innovation Hub Blog of no more than 500 words, using one of the following prompts:

• Design thinking takes a human-centered approach to problem solving. Why is design thinking valuable? Outside of the Innovation Hub, who are the design thinkers in Toronto, what are they working on? What impact are these design thinkers having on the world?
• Equity is a deeply important value at the University of Toronto and in the Innovation Hub. Showcase a story of equity in action at the university or in Toronto.
• Changemaking is what we do at the Innovation Hub – students are creating change in their own university. Where else is changemaking happening at the University of Toronto or in our city?