Caseworkers bear witness to the stories of constituents experiencing the federal government, often in the most difficult and intimate moments of their lives. In this session, we took lessons from The Moth-style storytelling to consider what makes a compelling story and what storytelling can teach us about listening. Participants also learned how practicing the skills of a good story-listener or coach can help ground and de-escalate constituents, and how the stories we hear can build support for policy change.

For many small and mid-size cities, navigating relationships with their congressional representatives can be challenging, especially when lacking the resources to hire a federal lobbyist. In this session, veteran caseworkers Katherine Long and Anne Meeker shared insights from their careers as congressional staffers on what local communities can ask of their congressional representatives.

The most effective tool caseworkers have at their disposal is a good relationship with an agency contact. This session focused on what casework looks like from the agency side, and tips for building and maintaining strong professional relationships with agency liaisons.