Job Details

Overview

Duke Community Affairs' Affordable Housing Council is funding a grant to help a Durham House of Worship (HOW) build an Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) for a housing-challenged individual or family. As the project unfolds, the team is capturing lessons learned to create a manual to support future HOWs in understanding the basics of housing development on House of Worship-owned land and the steps entailed in navigating internal decision-making and partnering with local organizations that offer development and project management expertise. We're seeking a graduate student to help translate this real-time process, and the surrounding research, into a clear, complete manual.

Role Summary

The Intern will report to the Senior Director of Community Development at Duke Community Affairs (DCA) and work closely with a Housing Council working group. They will work with the Council to create a framework for pulling together the threads of valuable information across partners to support the creation of the manual, then flesh out that framework throughout the ADU pilot, capturing decisions, challenges, and learnings as they happen. This is more than a transcription role: the ideal candidate can listen for what matters, ask good follow-up questions, fill in gaps with independent research, and shape raw material into a coherent, usable manual. The role will also engage directly with the faith community partner to document their experience and perspective, ensuring the manual reflects both the project management and relational sides of the work. Other partners include the selected nonprofit project coordinator and Durham City-County Departments including the Planning & Development Department and Building & Safety Department. Independent research may include connecting with other groups working locally in the faith and housing community development space, including Faith Based Housing Initiative, New Chapter Ventures, Wesley CDC, and BLK South.

Responsibilities

• Attend Housing Council working group meetings once to twice a month and work with members to build a framework for the manual, drawing on the Council's application, evaluation, and selection process to date.
• Check in with the Project Coordinator periodically to collect and capture their thoughts, decisions, and lessons learned as the project progresses
• Organize and synthesize notes, interviews, and research into a complete first draft of the HOW ADU manual, covering topics such as: faith community discernment process, high-level planning considerations, high-level construction considerations, financing and liability, tenant considerations, and the nonprofit partnership approach
• Interview the House of Worship partner(s) to document their experience, motivations, and challenges throughout the process
• Coordinate with Durham City-County Departments (Planning & Development, Building & Safety) as needed to accurately capture high level regulatory and permitting considerations for the manual
• Work with the Senior Director and Housing Council working group to determine areas where supplementary research will be valuable to filling gaps and adding context (e.g., ADU zoning/permitting norms, comparable affordable housing partnerships, best practices for faith-based housing partnerships)
• Incorporate feedback from the Project Coordinator, Housing Council, Duke Community Affairs, and the House of Worship partner through iterative revisions to the manual
• Maintain organized documentation (notes, interview records, source materials) to support future edits or replication
• If schedule allows, attend Housing Council meetings first Thursday of the month from 9:30-11:30am (meetings rotate between virtual and in person)