Welfare Law Unit Community Partnerships

Education and Outreach

The Welfare Law Unit regularly provides trainings for staff of community organizations that work with our clients. Topics include basic welfare requirements and rights, immigrant eligibility rules, the rights of clients with limited English proficiency, protections for domestic violence survivors, and the rights of individuals with disabilities.

A Unit attorney is currently doing outreach to the Boston-area Brazilian community, working with community organizations that serve the Brazilian community to increase awareness of rights of welfare recipients and to reach an under-served community.

Collaborative of Boston family shelter and education and training providers

The Welfare Law Unit has had a long and productive role in a Collaborative of Boston homeless family shelter providers and education and training providers, based largely in the Roxbury-Dorchester neighborhoods.

We participate in all Collaborative meetings, provide training and legal updates, and played a major role in the development of client assessment procedures. We created a system for direct referral of clients to the Welfare Law Unit by Collaborative partner organizations for proactive assessments to ensure clients are aware of all benefits for which they are eligible, their options and rights, and to assist in maximizing their ability to participate in Collaborative education, training, and other work-preparation programs. Our referral system also provides for referral of clients with urgent welfare and child care cases, so that we are able to undertake representation of the client promptly.