Legislative Education and Advocacy Day (LEAD)
CALLING ALL SOCIAL WORKERS!
We will be hosting our annual Legislative Education Advocacy and Day (LEAD) on Monday, March 31, 2025. We are especially excited for this year because for the first time in four years, we will be hosting LEAD in-person at the state house, rather than virtually on Zoom.
LEAD offers students a unique chance to take a direct approach with advocacy by using hands-on tactics to uplift issues they are passionate about and engaging in macro social work practice. By the end of the event, we hope these social workers and early professionals understand the importance of legislative advocacy and lobbying, have an awareness of NASW’s current legislative priorities, and possess adequate experience and knowledge to lobby their representatives in their future practice.
This event includes remarks from impressive keynote speakers, a how-to session for lobbying, and panel discussions related to some of the bills on our legislative agenda. Directly following the event, attendees are encouraged to lobby their legislators – this is the most important part of the program.
Meeting with your legislators (Meetings should be scheduled a month before LEAD):
Scheduling a meeting with your legislator is easy as 1, 2, 3!
1. Find your legislator's contact information (hint: use this link here: https://malegislature.gov/Search/FindMyLegislator)
2. Call or e-mail your legislator.
Example script: Hi, my name is _________ and I am a constituent (resident if not a registered voter) of Rep./Sen. ________. I'd like to set up a meeting with them regarding bill# ________.
3. Find a time to meet with your legislator or their aide. (Note: Aides are crucial to keeping their legislators informed and are just as important to meet with).
Be sure to bring any fact sheets related to your bill and, of course, your personal stories about how this bill would affect you or your clients. Want more guidance on what to chat about when meeting with your state senator or state rep? Click here!
Note: Legislators will often schedule coffee hours or other times for you to meet with them in the district. Check out their social media pages to find out when! To schedule a meeting with legislators, folks should begin by finding their state senator and representatives here and reach out to the appropriate offices. If folks have any questions or need assistance, they are encouraged to reach out to Brianna Silva at bsilva.naswma@socialworkers.org, Dakota Armstrong at intern1.naswma@socialworkers.org, or Audrey Leopold at intern2.naswma@socialworkers.org.
Sponsorships
The opportunity to sponsor LEAD 2025 is now available. Please contact Brianna Silva at bsilva.naswma@socialworkers.org to learn about the different sponsorship options.
