Legal Aid Leaders - Finding Solutions Together (A preview of the MIE Journal, Spring 2009, out soon), from Mary Asbury.

As Legal Aid programs are again confronted with severe reductions in funding, not only from IOLTA but also from state general revenue funds and foundation grants, management teams and boards of directors face hard decisions that can affect the health of their organizations for years to come. Some members of our community have strong opinions about the merits of deficit spending, reductions in force, hiring freezes, furloughs, pay cuts, and other cost-savings measures. Some are redoubling their efforts to diversify funding and others fear that "chasing the money" will be damaging.

While discussing these issues with colleagues, a number of things have become clear to me.

There is a great deal of variety in the situations facing Legal Aid programs around the country.
Some Legal Aid programs have significant operating reserves; others have few or none.
Some Legal Aid programs have resource development capacity - staff and community relationships that may result in meaningful new revenue.
Federal Recovery Act funds are realistically available to support some programs, but not others.
Some areas of the country are much harder hit than others.
Programs that had big budgets supported by IOLTA revenue and robust bar campaigns may be in a bigger crisis than those relying primarily on LSC funds.
As program leaders, we need to analyze the circumstances we are in, build capacity to raise revenue, and think creatively about a range of alternatives when cutting staff costs. We also need to be aware of our own tendencies to be optimistic or pessimistic, cautious or risk-taking, and make sure we are seeking to balance our own tendencies with other points of view.

Lastly, while there may be lessons learned from previous hard times, and it is important to see similarities, we must also note differences between the current situation and 1996 or 1982.

MIE hopes that the spring issue of the MIE Journal, our National Directors Conference and National Fundraising Conference, to be held back-to-back in Chicago, July 21 - 24, 2009, and the MIE website resource library will provide an opportunity for reflection, discussion and support as we work together through these difficult times.

In this Journal's special feature "Financial Management in Tough Times," you will find Gerry Singsen's review of the twists and turns of funding for legal aid. Jane Curran describes what IOLTA programs can do now to maximize revenue and protect it in the future. Meredith McBurney compiles best practices for fundraising in difficult economic times, and Joe Surkiewicz shares tips for using media wisely to assist in fundraising. Victor Geminiani and Neil McBride offer their lessons managing the ups and downs of revenue in local programs. John Arango reviews the Wharton Papers, commissioned in 1981 to assist legal aid programs facing retrenchment, and still valuable to us today. John Tull sets forth a structure for making strategic decisions in response to funding cuts with an eye toward the intended future of our programs.

Whether this is the fourth revenue down cycle in your legal aid experience, or the first, we hope that the insights and ideas presented in this Journal will help you see your way toward developing a thoughtful, creative and effective plan going forward for your program.

One more word about MIE's 2009 National Directors Conference and National Fundraising Conference. They follow one another in Chicago, July 21 - 24, 2009. Registration fees have been rolled back to 2008 levels, and all those executive directors and managers who attend the National Directors event can participate in the Fundraising Conference at one-half rate. The Conferences will emphasize the opportunity to share experiences and best practices with each other on essential leadership and resource development topics. "Legal Aid Leaders - Finding Solutions Together."

~ Mary Asbury, Executive Director, Legal Aid Society of Greater Cincinnati, and Member, MIE Board of Directors