BALTIMORE (July 16, 2026) – Legal aid fundraising and communications professionals from across the country will gather in Baltimore July 21–22 for the 2026 MIE National Legal Aid Fundraising & Communications Conference at the Royal Sonesta.

Presented by Management Information Exchange, this year’s conference theme is Forward Together: Uniting Supporters for Lasting Change. Sessions will explore strategies for strengthening legal aid fundraising, communications, volunteer engagement, leadership and organizational impact.

Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service (MVLS) is proud to have four staff members presenting during the two-day conference:

• Etta Moen, Volunteer Coordinator: Volunteer Engagement in Legal Services: Grow What You Know
• Todd Troester, Director of Development: Beyond the Grant: How Funders’ Insights Shape Change
• Chandler Walters, Outreach and Communications Manager: Anti-Racist Communications as Accountability in Legal Aid
• Cara Schaefer, Development Manager: Monthly Giving: Building Sustainable Support That Lasts

Through these sessions, MVLS staff will share practical strategies for strengthening volunteer programs, cultivating sustainable donor support, incorporating funder perspectives and building communications practices rooted in transparency, equity and community trust.

The conference provides an opportunity for MVLS to welcome national legal aid colleagues to Baltimore while highlighting the knowledge, partnerships and innovation advancing access to justice across Maryland.

About Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service
Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service (MVLS) removes barriers to justice through free civil legal help, community engagement and advocacy for equitable laws. The organization matches clients with volunteer lawyers, tax professionals and staff attorneys who represent them in a wide range of consumer finance, family and housing matters, including foreclosure, bankruptcy, divorce and custody, deed changes, income tax disputes, estate planning and criminal record relief. MVLS advocates for racial equity in Maryland’s legal system and works alongside community partners to move toward a fair legal system that is free of injustice and equitably serves underrepresented Marylanders. For more information, visit mvlslaw.org.