Tips for Visiting your Legislator



Tips for Writing an Op-Ed

Most daily and weekly newspapers accept outside submissions for publication on their opinion pages. Longer than letters to the editor, op-ed pieces generally run between 500 and 700 words.

Here are a couple of tips on writing an op-ed:

• Use short, simple sentences.

• Avoid jargon.

• Explicitly support or oppose something.

• Personalize the op-ed with an anecdote.

• Link the op-ed to a current news story but keep the focus local.

• Follow the particular paper's guidelines for submission closely.

Try the following outline for your op-ed:

1. Start with a personal anecdote.

2. Make your main point in the first or second paragraph.

3. Begin to elaborate two, maximum three, supporting points in the following paragraphs. Make sure your paragraphs are short and contain one main idea.

4. Use facts, statistics and studies to support your arguments. Do not, however, be overly legal. Use metaphors (sports, movies and music work best) to relate complex ideas.

5. Conclude with a paragraph that draws the piece together and links to your opening anecdote.

Source: American Civil Liberties Union. How to write an op-ed piece. Retrieved March 2006 from

Sample Op-Ed

Social Work – An Investment in Care for Baby Boomers

By [Name, Title, Organization]

More than 77 million Americans are considered part of the baby boom generation. Adults born between 1946 and 1964 have the distinction of being the largest generation, representing 27% of the population. With the aging of baby boomers and the lengthening of life spans, both the number and proportion of older people is rapidly increasing.

The demand for social work will only increase as the needs of this large section of the population increases. The National Association of Social Workers Center for Workforce Studies recently completed its first major study of the social work labor force where findings show that the supply of professional social workers may not be sufficient to meet the demands of aging baby boomers.

[Optional Section – provide the name of a social worker in your community that has made a difference in working with older people and his/her accomplishments.]

National Social Work Month is the ideal time to highlight the immediate and on-going need for an investment in the social work labor force. Social workers have the specialized knowledge and expertise to address issues facing older Americans. This year’s Social Work Month theme – Life’s Journey: Help Starts Here – focuses on how social workers help all people at every stage of life, while promoting dignity for everyone, especially the most vulnerable among us.

Source: National Association of Social Workers. Retrieved March 2006 from

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