A message from Allison Constance, new Director of Pro Bono Programs

Headshot of Allison Constance, Director of Pro Bono Programs

Dear volunteers,

As the new Director of Pro Bono Programs for Legal Aid of North Carolina, I want to introduce myself and preview upcoming ways for you to engage with us as a pro bono volunteer.

But first thing’s first …

Thank you

Thank you for being a pro bono volunteer with Legal Aid of North Carolina. Whether you’ve been with us for years or months, whether you’ve taken too many cases to count or are waiting for your first one—thank you. Thank you for giving your limited time and invaluable talents to our clients, and to us. We can’t do what we do without your help. On behalf of everyone at Legal Aid NC, I extend to you our deepest and most sincere “thank you.”

Get used to hearing that a lot from me.

About me

Leading Legal Aid NC’s Pro Bono Programs team is a new role for me—I’ve been on the job for only a few weeks—but supporting underrepresented people in North Carolina has been my passion for a long time. You may know me from my time as Director of Pro Bono Initiatives at UNC School of Law or in my previous role as an attorney at North Carolina Prisoner Legal Services. If we don’t yet know each other, I hope to change that. To start, let’s connect on LinkedIn.

Now, let’s talk pro bono.

Past and present

In the past few years, the Legal Aid NC pro bono program has struggled with some staffing deficits and shifting case priorities due to the pandemic. We have looked closely at our work and community needs, and we are redesigning many of our pro bono programs from the ground up. And we have some big plans.

We want our pro bono programs to meet our clients’ most pressing legal needs while also meeting yours. We want to know what motivates you to volunteer, what you need to succeed, and how we can meaningfully thank you for your service.

Coming soon

In the coming months, we will be announcing new recognition opportunities and awards, we look forward to launching our Summer Associate Program, and we can’t wait to share with you more opportunities to engage (even remotely!) in meaningful service.

For now, if you have any questions about pro bono at Legal Aid of North Carolina—its past, present or future—do not hesitate to reach out to our team at probono [at] legalaidnc.org.

You can also stop by our webpage at legalaidnc.org/pro-bono for the latest info about pro bono at Legal Aid. Thank you again for serving as a pro bono volunteer with us. We are excited to have you as a partner on our journey into a bright future for pro bono at Legal Aid of North Carolina.

If you want to receive updates from the Pro Bono Programs team, click here to sign up for our email list.