Plain Language

Join the best and brightest plain language practitioners from across the federal government.

Katina Stapleton

Dr. Rachael Bradley Montgomery

Heather Holland

Laura Rabuck

Amanda Damewood

Stephanie M. Morrison, MPH

Content Design for beta.ADA.gov: Writing for Action and Flexibility

Content Design for beta.ADA.gov: Writing for Action and Flexibility—18F worked with a team at the Department of Justice to redesign ADA.gov. They helped them launch beta.ada.gov, and designed new content for some of the most sought-after ADA topics.— via 18F

Jul 13, 2022

Get tips and lessons learned from the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division on using plain language to increase their impact and influence.

Daniel Yi

Katherine Spivey

Katina Stapleton

Multilingual

10 Tips to Create, Maintain, and Present Non-English Digital Content: A Q&A with Michael Mulé

This question and answer session for our webinar, Language Connections: Tips to Create, Maintain, and Present Non-English Digital Content, can help you improve access to your multilingual digital content.

Michael Mulé

May 23, 2022

Lessons from the 2021 Federal Plain Language Report Card

During the Digital.gov and Plain Language Community event, Results of the 2021 Federal Report Card, speaker David Lipscomb gave examples of web content that received both high and low scores in the 2021 Plain Language Report Card. Here’s what we learned.

Mara Goldberg

Gabby Fratanduono-King

Mar 11, 2022

Meet the content strategists who worked to transform FindTreatment.gov to connect people in crisis with the help that they need.

Katherine Spivey

Amanda Costello

Katina Stapleton

Multilingual

Webinar Recap: How To Best Connect With Your Spanish-speaking Audience During an Emergency

In this panel discussion, experts from different agencies shared how they’ve used social media to reach Hispanic audiences during emergencies and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mara Goldberg

Gabby Fratanduono-King

Jan 24, 2022

Plain Language

Keynote Speaker Recap: Would More Plain Language Have Saved Us From the Worst of the Pandemic?

A summary of Cynthia Baur’s keynote at the 2021 Plain Language Summit.

Katherine Spivey

Mara Goldberg

Gabby Fratanduono-King

Jan 04, 2022

Plain Language

Webinar Recap: Key Takeaways on Simplifying Hazard Communications With Plain Language

An overview of the presentation by Danielle Nagele of NOAA at the 2021 Plain Language Summit. Learn how she and her team used feedback to decrease confusion and increase impact.

Rebecca Nelson

Jan 04, 2022

Professional Development

Webinar Recap: The Part-Timer

Learn how Joanne Short of the United States Postal Service (USPS) opened professional doors by going beyond her job description in her Plain Language Summit session, The Part-Timer.

Jacquelyn Dolezal Morales

Dec 15, 2021

David Lipscomb from the Center for PL will review the results of this year’s Federal Plain Language Report Card and answer questions.

Katherine Spivey

Katina Stapleton

David Lipscomb

On 9/21/21, PLAIN’s Fourth Federal PL Summit showcases federal employees’ plain language projects. Topics include COVID-19 agency responses, accessibility, user experience, and career enhancement.

Katherine Spivey

Katina Stapleton

Learn how to tell a story and figure out what role plain language plays in storytelling.

Bethany Blakey

Katherine Spivey

Words make digital experiences human-centered, and require just as much thought as the branding and code. As federal agencies strive to use human-centered design, they need to remember that words and design work together. See how interfaces rely on language, and how your writing can make or break an experience. Learn principles for UX writing that anyone who works on digital products can apply to their own work.

Katherine Spivey

Andy Welfle

Learn how to brand yourself as a plain language expert and get the credit at work that you deserve!

Watch Video

Wendy Wagner-Smith

Katherine Spivey

Usability testing isn’t only for websites. Come work with Dr. Ginny Redish and try out three techniques for quick and easy ways to test the usability of your documents.

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Ginny Redish

Katherine Spivey

How to Present Like a Pro

How to Present Like a Pro—When you are presenting on streaming video, you are essentially doing the same thing as a television news anchor. Try these common methods that television presenters use daily to improve your presentation skills in the “zoom” era.— via Digital.gov

Mar 25, 2021

Come join us as we focus on concerns and opportunities shared by the Section 508 and plain language communities in Government!

Watch Video

Bethany Letalien

Katherine Spivey

Alex Wilson

We’ve all had to learn new modes of presenting and communicating now that we’re teleworking full-time and depend on online broadcast technology. But how can you engage students and teach a class while sitting in front of a laptop camera? Join Wendy Wagner-Smith from the Small Business Administration and find out!

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Wendy Wagner-Smith

Katherine Spivey

David Lipscomb will review, The Annual Federal Report Card, which is a snapshot of how well the federal government is following the 2010 Plain Writing Act.

Watch Video

David Lipscomb

Katherine Spivey

Plain Language

2022 Federal Plain Language Summit

Content Design for beta.ADA.gov: Writing for Action and Flexibility

Increase Your Impact With Plain Language

10 Tips to Create, Maintain, and Present Non-English Digital Content: A Q&A with Michael Mulé

Lessons from the 2021 Federal Plain Language Report Card

Plain Language + Compassion Help People in Crisis

Webinar Recap: How To Best Connect With Your Spanish-speaking Audience During an Emergency

Keynote Speaker Recap: Would More Plain Language Have Saved Us From the Worst of the Pandemic?

Webinar Recap: Key Takeaways on Simplifying Hazard Communications With Plain Language

Webinar Recap: The Part-Timer

Results of the 2021 Federal Report Card

2021 Federal Plain Language Summit

Using Plain Language To Tell Our Stories

Plain Language Webinar: Using Words to Build Better Digital Experiences

Positioning Yourself as a Plain Language Editor

How Testing Your Documents Can Improve Plain Language Compliance

How to Present Like a Pro

Plain Language: Accessibility for Content

Virtual Teaching: Plain Language

2020 Federal Report Card Briefing

More News and Events on Plain Language