The Problem
People with developmental disabilities (DD) and their families said that information about services and support is often hard to understand. Many documents use complicated language and technical terms, making it difficult for people to get the information they need.
What Happened
The New York State Council on Developmental Disabilities (CDD) worked with the Young Adult Institute (YAI) to make information easier to understand.
The project:
- Created plain-language versions of documents commonly used by people with DD and their advocates.
- Developed a training program to teach organizations how to use plain language.
- Created a toolkit to help service providers and other organizations improve their communication.
Results
The project provided plain-language materials to 1,224 people and trained 98 professionals.
One participant shared:
“The training was a great reminder to always put the target audience at the center of every work we do. I will ensure to keep in mind my audience and also not forget the testing process.”
Why the Council’s Role Was Important
The CDD worked with self-advocates and community organizations that identified hard-to-understand information as a barrier to accessing services. In response, the Council developed this project to help make information clearer and more accessible.