Advocacy Tip of the Month, May 2007

Write a Letter your Congressional Office will Read

Offices on Capitol Hill receive thousands of form letters from constituents each day, which makes it vital that you personalize your messages so they get read, get noticed, and have an impact. According to a House Legislative Correspondence staffer, "One hundred form letters have less direct value than a single thoughtful letter generated by a constituent of the member's district" (Congressional Management Foundation, 2005).

When writing your letters, please keep the following tips in mind:

• Keep it simple and concise.
  Busy congressional staffers appreciate succinct, one-page letters. Wordy messages are less likely to be read and therefore have little chance of influencing your member of Congress.
  

• State your ask explicitly in the first paragraph.
  Members of Congress want to please their constituents, so make it easy for them to say 'yes' by clearly stating what you want them to do – whether your request is for them to cosponsor legislation, vote yes on an amendment, or support a bill when it comes to the floor, etc.
  

• Tell a story.
  Describe how the legislation you are writing about affects your institution and/or a specific student. If relevant, include data from NAFSA’s Economic Impact Statements to illustrate the financial impact international students have on your state and district. Or, for creating a local picture on study abroad, include the percentage of students in your state who study abroad each year.

Action Steps

1. Write a letter through the Take Action Center. If you haven't already written your senators or representative about the Simon Study Abroad Act, please send a personalized letter to them this week. Include information such as how the Simon Program would help your institution to increase the percentage of students who study abroad at your institution or in your state, encourage currently underserved students to study abroad, or diversify the locations in which they study.

2. Read influential letters recently written by other NAFSAns. View excerpts from letters written by your colleagues to see how they personalized their messages.