Florida Leadership Development Institute helps legal aid attorneys emerge as leaders The Florida Leadership Development Institute Class of 2009-10

February 2010
by Gabrielle Davis

ORLANDO — Lawyer Roberto Cruz didn’t know it then, but the challenges of raising an autistic son would be the catalyst that changed his career.

After moving his family from Puerto Rico to Florida in hopes for a better quality of life for his son, Cruz, a business and government attorney, soon turned to championing the rights of the disabled.

His advocating for disability rights led to an offer to work at Community Legal Services of Mid-Florida in Kissimmee, where he provides legal representation for those who couldn’t otherwise afford it.

“My greatest fear is that the system that will provide for my son will collapse without a strong protection and defense of the public interest,” Cruz said. “The government and business interests are well represented. Who is going to articulate the point of view of the public? If not me, then who?”

That sense of duty was shared by Cruz and fellow legal aid attorneys as they reviewed their work for legal aid during the last days of the Florida Leadership Development Institute, which held its concluding session Jan 14.

The 14-month program teaches up-and-coming legal aid attorneys fundamental leadership skills with support from more experienced attorneys and leaders in legal aid, who serve as their mentors. The Florida Bar Foundation allocated $100,000 and collaborated with the Center for Legal Aid Education (CLAE) to create the Institute, which was held for the first time this past year.

Through the program, 30 fellows and mentors developed a comprehensive set of skills essential to leadership in a social justice context. During in-person workshops in Orlando, as well as Web-based activities, the fellows and mentors worked in pairs to address real leadership challenges of legal aid work.

The fellows were able to apply leadership concepts to projects they created to solve problems they identified in their legal aid communities. Projects included advocating for the rights of immigrant women workers, curbing predatory lending practices, and developing a holistic legal aid clinic for victims of sexual violence.

The Institute, the first of its kind in Florida, is a chance to prepare legal aid attorneys who are ready and willing to take on leadership roles at their programs.

“The Leadership Development Institute is directed toward enabling promising advocates to be a force of leadership in the program where they are now,” said Paul Doyle, director of the Foundation’s Legal Assistance for the Poor and Law Student Assistance grant programs.

That’s what Deborah Rivera, an Institute fellow, is doing.

A former high school teacher, Rivera has long had a strong passion for the homeless ever since she visited a soup kitchen with her students more than 20 years ago.

A staff attorney at Three Rivers Legal Services since 2004, Rivera has developed a network to give the homeless in Lake City better access to public benefits.

“[Through the LDI,] I have learned that you don’t have to be in management to be a leader,” Rivera said. “I am just a staff attorney with a passion.”

The second Florida Leadership Development Institute is planned to begin in May.

Learn more about the Institute and apply to become a fellow or mentor in the next class.