Plain Language: Improving Communications from the Federal Government to the Public


Powered by Google

 
Home
PL Law
PL Guidelines
Examples
Examples DB
Tips & Tools
Popular Topics
Resources
PL Websites
PL Legacy

Upcoming Events

External links are shown with a"external link icon".

PLAIN Meeting: September 2012
Time: 2:00 to 3:30

   Frank Boland, an attorney in IRS’s Office of Chief Counsel, has been writing and reviewing regulations for more than 20 years.  Join Frank at this month’s PLAIN meeting for a tour of the “sentence assembly line” as he offers tips for clearing out the clutter in our documents, writing understandable rules and regulations, and explaining rules and regulations.

Directions:

The Federal Register Office is located three blocks north of the Union Station Metro at: 800 North Capitol Street, NW Suite 700, Washington DC 20001.  Go through security in the lobby; you must have a government-issued photo id. The Federal Register is located on the 7th floor.  Follow the sign saying public inspection to enter the lobby.

PLAIN Meeting: October 2012
Time: 2:00 to 3:30

 In printed copy, spaces don’t help people read. But in handwriting, they do. In this presentation, Kath Straub will describe how handwritten spaces are different, why they help people read and how your agency can use text formatting to make your important documents easier to read, remember and act on.  Specifically, she’ll describe research showing that text-formatting helps people —particularly new readers, less skilled readers and people reading in a second language—help people read and remember content more effectively. 

Directions:

The Federal Register Office is located three blocks north of the Union Station Metro at: 800 North Capitol Street, NW Suite 700, Washington DC 20001.  Go through security in the lobby; you must have a government-issued photo id. The Federal Register is located on the 7th floor.  Follow the sign saying public inspection to enter the lobby.

PLAIN Meeting: May 2012
Time: 2-3:30 pm

Peg Hausman, writer-editor at the U.S. International Trade Commission, will speak about grammatical urban legends. Some of these bugbears are fairly harmless, while (or is it "whereas"?) others can get in the way of plain writing. Bring examples of these pesky phenomena from your own workplace—and any tips you have for dealing with them.

Peg has been editing and teaching (writing, French, English grammar, and more) for over ("more than"?) 35 years. See you there!

Directions:

The Federal Register Office is located three blocks north of the Union Station Metro at: 800 North Capitol Street, NW Suite 700, Washington DC 20001.  Go through security in the lobby; you must have a government-issued photo id. The Federal Register is located on the 7th floor.  Follow the sign saying public inspection to enter the lobby.

PLAIN Meeting: March 2012
Time: 2-3:30 pm

Join Nicole Burton of GSA's First Fridays usability testing for a discussion of what usability testing is, what First Fridays tests, what problems usability testing reveals, and how First Fridays can help the plain language effort.


Directions:

Time: 2-3:30 pm
Location: NOMA, Room 901, Constitution Square
Directions: 1275 First St, NE. 

 Nearest metro: New York Avenue/Florida Avenue/Gallaudet University

Security: Your name will be on a security list. Bring a government-issued ID (if you have a Federal Government PIV badge, please bring that). You'll need to go through security screening.  Please arrive no later than 1:50 to clear security.

PLAIN Meeting: June 2012
Time: 2-3:30 pm

This month Dees Stallings' presentation focuses on the potential for three "enablers" of plain writing standards:  writing centers, style guides, and productivity measurements.

Learn how 21st-century writing centers and style guides - especially virtual ones - will allow unprecedented document quality control. Also consider how productivity measurements, including assessment methods and ROI calculators can foster a culture of continual improvement. These topics should be useful for all attendees, including managers, editors, consultants, and writers. Participants will be able to test the concepts with colleagues. Handouts provided.

Directions:

Location: USCIS, 20 Massachusetts Ave, NW, Washington DC.  20 Massachusetts Ave is one block west of Union Station. Take the main Mass Ave exit and walk right towards the U.S. Postal Museum. 20 Mass Ave is adjacent the Sun Trust bank at the corner of North Capitol Street.

Security: Your name will be on a security list. Bring a government-issued ID (if you have a federal gov't badge, please bring that). You'll need to go through security screening and then a PLAIN member will escort you to the room. 

PLAIN Meeting: July 2012
Time: 2-3:30 pm

With the second annivesary of the Plain Writing Act of 2010 coming up this October, PLAIN still has very little data concering how well federal agencies are complying with the law.  Please join us for a brainstorming session on encouraging agencies to collect, share, and use data on their use of plain language.

Directions:

Location: The Federal Register Office is located three blocks north of the Union Station Metro at: 800 North Capitol Street, NW Suite 700, Washington DC 20001.  Go through security in the lobby; you must have a government-issued photo id. The Federal Register is located on the 7th floor.  Follow the sign saying public inspection to enter the lobby.

PLAIN Meeting: January 2012
Time: 2-3:30 pm

Come join us for an exchange of information and ideas on editing and a discussion of editing problems and solutions. No edit question is too small or “dumb.”

For those who can't attend, we will provide call-in information the day of the meeting. 

Directions:

Time: 2-3:30 pm
Location: VA Office of Inspector General, 801 I Street, NW, TechWorld Building, Room 1105
Directions: We are located two blocks from the Gallery Place/Chinatown Metro station—exit at the big “fan” art and come out beneath the Chinatown Gate. Walk one block up 7th Street (you’ll pass Fadó Irish Pub on your left and Nando’s Peri Peri on your right), turn left at I Street, and walk one block to TechWorld. The VA OIG offices are in the left-side building of TechWorld.

Security: Your name will be on a security list. Bring a government-issued ID (if you have a Federal Government PIV badge, please bring that). You'll need to go through security screening.  Please arrive no later than 1:50 to clear security.

PLAIN Meeting: February 2012
Time: 2-3:30 pm

Yikes - our compliance plan is due!

Join us in February to get a head start on writing your agency's compliance plan. According to the Plain Writing Act, the head of each agency must publish on the plain writing section of the agency’s website a report on agency compliance with the requirements of this Act.

 

Come prepared to discuss 

 

  • how you're measuring compliance, 
  • what's working, 
  • what's not, and 
  • how you're going to put this report together.


Directions:

Time: 2-3:30 pm
Location: NOMA, Room 1101, Constitution Square
Directions: 1275 First St, NE. 

 Nearest metro: New York Avenue/Florida Avenue/Gallaudet University

Security: Your name will be on a security list. Bring a government-issued ID (if you have a Federal Government PIV badge, please bring that). You'll need to go through security screening.  Please arrive no later than 1:50 to clear security.

PLAIN Meeting: August 2012
Time:

We are not meeting this month.  Enjoy August vacation!

Directions:



PLAIN Meeting: April 2012
Time: 2-3:30 pm

Speakers -- 
-- Linda Joy, NOAA public affairs officer -- "Why science needs plain language"
-- Michael French Smith, anthropologist, author -- "Why scientists need plain language"

Special tour: at 1:30, the new NOAA Gateway exhibit will be open for the Plain group -- this is located by the Silver Spring Metro exit leading onto the NOAA campus in 1325 East West Highway -- this small, but informative exhibit is a great way to quickly get a sense of the scope of the science and services NOAA provides every day.


Directions:

NOAA

1311-B East West Highway (follow the signs -- next to the building with the Hand statue - 1315 East West Highway)


Please note: Metro if you can (Silver Spring Metro, exit via the south side entrance OPPOSITE the construction)- a short walk between Buildings 1-2 (NOAA Gateway will be on your left) meeting room is on East West Highway - there will be signs posted and a map at the Gateway.)
Parking is practically non-existent at NOAA -- those parking in the Giant lot across the street WILL BE TOWED.

Security: Your name will be on a security list. Bring a government-issued ID (if you have a Federal Government PIV badge, please bring that). You'll need to go through security screening.  Please arrive no later than 1:50 to clear security.

 
Search Events by Category

All Events

Current Events

Past Events

Past Meetings

Upcoming Events

News Articles

 
Home|About Us|Contact Us|Privacy and Other Policies|USA.gov|HowTo.gov|Usability.gov
 
Technical support for this website is provided by the Federal Aviation Administration
PLAIN develops and maintains the content of this site

Download Adobe Acrobat Reader.external link