JOIN CARTWHEEL TO HELP TACKLE THE STUDENT MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS.
Kids spend most of their days in the classroom. And teachers and staff, who play
a vital role in their development, are often the first to notice when something
is off. But with 1 in 5 young people struggling with mental health, schools are
getting crushed by a downward spiral in student crises and staff burnout.
With large increases in state and federal funding for healthcare innovation,
schools are reimagining what mental health support can look like for their
students, staff, and families.
Cartwheel is an early-stage startup building technology-enabled mental health
services that put schools at the center. We see our role as supporting both
families and the on-campus school staff who see kids every day. This means:
Earlier intervention
Higher student and family engagement in care
Better coordination among the trusted adults in a student’s life
Kids shouldn't just aspire to get out of bed and drag themselves to class. They
should be able to experience joy. They deserve to envision and build a life
they’re excited to live. If you join Cartwheel, you’ll help make this vision a
reality for millions of students across the country. We’re backed by top
investors including Menlo Ventures, General Catalyst, Reach Capital, and A
Street Ventures, and we're looking for mission-driven teammates to join our
team.
LOCATION: Remote
START DATE: September 2026
ROLE TYPE: Paid Internship
COMPENSATION: Paid per project, typically $500–$2,000 depending on scope and
complexity (roughly 10–30 hours of work)
ABOUT THE ROLE
Cartwheel is the nation's largest mental health provider working with K-12
schools — more than 375 districts across 16 states and growing fast. In 2026,
billions of dollars in new state and federal funding will reshape how America
invests in youth mental health, and Cartwheel is at the center of that
conversation.
We're looking for an extraordinary writer to help us make the case — to
governors, legislators, agency leaders, and school district decision-makers —
that Cartwheel is the partner that turns those investments into real outcomes
for kids and families.
This is not a grant writing role. This is a storytelling and persuasion role.
You'll take the messy, complicated reality of what it looks like to deliver
mental health care inside schools — the data, the policy constraints, the
clinical outcomes, the parent who finally got her kid help — and turn it into
writing that moves people to act. The audiences range from state legislators to
cabinet secretaries, and the work ranges from a polished proposal responding to
a statewide RFP to a two-page briefing that lands on a governor's desk.
The best candidate for this role may not have a background in government
contracting. You’re someone who learned to write by writing — as a reporter, a
freelance journalist, or in a role where you had to pitch and persuade, like
running a company or a team. You know how to make complex ideas clear, how to
build a narrative arc, and how to write for an audience that doesn’t share your
vocabulary. You care about the craft and you want to point it at something that
matters.
WHAT YOU’LL DO
WRITE A PIECE OF THE PROPOSALS
Draft a section of a statewide RFP response or sole-source justification
package — a case study, an outcomes narrative, a program description
Turn a rough summary of outcomes data or an implementation story into a page
or two of clear, compelling prose
Write for a policymaker
Draft a short briefing, leave-behind, or one-pager aimed at a specific
legislator, agency, or governor's office audience
Turn a family's story or a school's results into a short, honest narrative
that could sit inside a real leave-behind
Sharpen existing content
Take an existing draft and tighten it — cut what's bloated, surface what's
buried, sharpen the ask
Help build out a piece of the team's reusable content library — a case study,
a proof point, a model description
WHO YOU ARE
MUST HAVE…
Currently enrolled in a strong journalism or writing program, or equivalent
independent experience — able to take on individual writing projects
(typically 10–30 hours each) on a rolling basis throughout the term
Strong raw writing talent, demonstrated through a portfolio of published
writing (student newspaper, campus publication, journalism coursework,
internship clips, or independent writing) that shows clear, narrative-driven
storytelling for a general audience
Experience writing for or communicating with audiences that are busy,
skeptical, and not experts in your subject area
Sharp editorial instincts: You can look at a piece of writing and tell what’s
missing, what’s bloated, and what’s buried
Ability to tailor written content by audience and political or institutional
context
Coachable and eager to learn quickly in a fast-paced, deadline-driven
environment with multiple concurrent deliverables; developing strong
self-editing instincts
Genuine interest in youth mental health, education, or public policy — you
don't need deep domain expertise on day one, but you need to care enough to
build it quickly
Open to flexible work arrangements, including hourly, project-based, or
fellowship-style
Nice to have…
Experience writing government-facing content: RFP responses, grant proposals,
legislative briefings, policy documents, or equivalent
Familiarity with K–12 education, school-based mental health, or pediatric
behavioral health
Familiarity with state-level Medicaid, RHTP, or education funding mechanisms
Experience supporting government affairs, public affairs, or policy teams in
a growth-stage company
Experience building or managing a content or asset library for a sales or
partnerships team
Prior work in healthcare technology, edtech, or mission-driven organizations