DEPARTMENT OF CHILD SAFETY

The Arizona Department of Child Safety (DCS) is a social and human services agency whose mission is to successfully partner with families, caregivers, and the community to strengthen families, ensure safety, and achieve permanency for all Arizona’s children through prevention, services, and support.

 

Start Your Career Making a Difference...Tell the Stories That Matter!

 

 COMMUNICATIONS INTERN OPPORTUNITY

PHOENIX, AZ  85012

 

Location: Arizona (Hybrid or In-Office depending on assignment)
Position Type: Unpaid Internship
Duration: Flexible based on academic requirements/class schedule

 

Make An Impact With DCS

The Communications Intern will support the Communications Team at the Arizona Department of Child Safety in strengthening public awareness, transparency, and community engagement. This internship provides hands-on experience in government communications, digital content creation, media support, and public information initiatives related to child welfare services.

This opportunity is designed for students or early-career individuals seeking to develop practical skills in public sector communications while contributing to the mission of protecting Arizona’s children and supporting families.

 

Why DCS?

Working with the Arizona Department of Child Safety (DCS) as an intern is more than just gaining experience—it’s an opportunity to contribute to a mission-driven organization that supports Arizona’s children and families. You’ll collaborate with a team that is passionate about child welfare and committed to serving with integrity, compassion, and accountability. This internship offers the chance to develop professional skills while learning how public service communications help strengthen communities across Arizona.

What You’ll Do

As a Communications Intern, you’ll work under the direction of the Director  of Communications.  This position will function primarily as a multimedia creator and editor telling the stories of the Department and the community it serves, helping to support the DCS mission of strengthening families and ensuring the safety of and achieving permanency for all of Arizona’s children through prevention, services and support.  You will:

• Collaborate with the Department of Child Safety staff, stakeholders and partners to record and edit stories for use on social and owned media.
• Attend creative meetings with Communications staff and other teams within DCS as needed to learn and contribute to communications strategy.
• Assist Public Information Officer with story fact-finding, writing and research.
• Assist Communications staff in the field with content shoots and events as needed.
• Conduct organizational administrative tasks as needed such as photo, video, and multimedia logging, filing and labeling.

We're Looking For Someone Who:

• Shows interest in social media strategy and short-form digital storytelling.
• Has proficiency in video and visual content editing in one or more of the following-mobile applications, Canva or Adobe Creative Cloud.
• Demonstrates strong creative writing skills with the ability to craft engaging and audience-focused content.
• Has knowledge of news writing principles, including clarity, accuracy, and AP-style formatting.
• Has a foundational understanding of traditional and digital news media environments

What We Need From You (Qualifications):

• Preferred school areas of study:  School of Journalism, Film School, School of Communications/Public Relations, School of Social Work
• The ability to obtain and maintain a valid Department of Public Safety Level One Fingerprint Clearance Card
• Work history, Central Registry and Public Record checks will be considered

 

If You Have the Skills, You Can Make a Lasting Impact.

 

Persons with a disability may request a reasonable accommodation such as a sign language interpreter or an alternative format by contacting 602-255-3141 or by email at ADA@AZDCS.GOV.   Requests should be made as early as possible to allow time to arrange the accommodation.  Should you have any further questions regarding the interview process you can reach out to a member of our recruitment team at 602-255-2903 or by email at recruiting@azdcs.gov.  The State of Arizona is an Equal Opportunity/Reasonable Accommodation Employer.