Communications have the opportunity to engage and amplify marginalized voices in authentic and affirming ways. They can also do the opposite—perpetuate design, content, and approaches that exclude and harm those voices. The questions on this worksheet ask education networks to consider equity in: the content and creation of their communications, the form they take, and how they are disseminated.
Guiding Questions
Storytelling is essential to the work of education networks, making the work real and recognizable and showcasing a network’s value and collective impact. But storytelling (and branding around a network) that self-promotes, without amplifying others, will alienate partners and perpetuate inequity. Rather, education networks have the opportunity to build trust and offer value to the community by using their platform to showcase a diversity of partners, especially marginalized voices.
Equity-focused communications center the stories of marginalized communities, as authentically told by those voices. Equity-focused networks adapt their message and mode of communication to meet the needs of diverse and marginalized audiences. And they seek out feedback from network members on how communications are accessed, used, and perceived.
On the worksheet in this module, you’ll find questions that ask networks to reflect on equity in their communications in how they are created, packaged, and shared. You can also explore resources on how to make communications more equitable and culturally competent, from planning to promotion.
Education Innovation Clusters