Sitemap“We had developed a reputation as an organization that just says no to people,” Executive Director Steven McGarrity said. “Legal Aid for a long time has not been focused on going out into the community. We sort of waited in our offices for the phone to ring.”
Over the past year, attorneys with the nonprofit law firm serving the legal needs of low-income people in central and northeast Ohio have been busy getting out into the community -- rather than sitting behind desks waiting for the community to come to them.
One such community lawyering endeavor is the Neighborhood Law Project, a partnership between Legal Aid and other organizations. The goal of the NLP is to help residents overcome legal problems that are getting in the way of their work, education or health – in a very concentrated and strategic way.
Legal Aid attorneys have been going out into Youngstown’s neighborhoods to meet clients where they live, work and play for the pilot project. Two attorneys are working full-time on it, with plans for another to be hired soon.
The project, which was funded by a $350,000 Ohio Legal Assistance Foundation’s Neighborhood Stabilization Grant, provides holistic legal services to families within the Taft Promise Neighborhood.
“We are focusing on the neighborhood around Taft Elementary to raise the educational outcomes around that school,” McGarrity said. “There are lots of barriers in kids’ lives that affect their ability to get a good education, such as food and housing stability. Jumping from school to school is obviously going to affect their education.”
The goals of the NLP are to improve neighborhoods, increase affordable housing opportunities, remove barriers to employment and education and support entrepreneurial efforts for low-income neighborhoods. Lawyers can help resolve issues with housing, work, custody and family needs, finances and education. The idea is that families can focus more on being present at work, school and home when these problems are fixed. To read the full story from the Daily Legal News, click here.