One DHS People, Access and Culture · Learning path · I'm planning a meeting everyone can take part in
Accessible and culturally responsive meeting
You are running a meeting and want everyone to be able to take part, contribute, and know what was decided.
Outcome: By the end, you will have a reusable meeting plan: purpose and materials sent ahead, accommodation offered without disclosure, several ways to contribute, attention to positional power, a plan for repair if harm occurs, decisions with owners, and accessible follow-up.
Situations that may fit this path
A team meeting, all-staff, or partner meeting you are running
A meeting where some people rarely speak
A meeting with interpretation, captioning, or hybrid participation
Six steps to work through in order
Plan for participation — Use Ask to work through the purpose, the participation formats, and the access arrangements for this meeting. · Ask a question — program page /ask?path=gp-8
Consider community context (If relevant) — If the meeting includes community partners, read the relevant brief for access, timing, and what not to assume. · Explore Minnesota Communities — program page /minnesota-communities
Choose practical resources — Use the accessible meeting guidance and the access checks. · Accessible and culturally responsive meetings — program page /resources/ja-accessible-meetings · Access checks before a meeting or outreach — program page /resources/ja-access-checks
Draft your meeting plan — Complete the plan. Leave out names. Use the downloaded checklist to write your answers in a tool you normally use. This page does not save them.
Review your work — Confirm materials go out ahead, accommodation is offered to everyone, there are several ways to contribute, decisions will have owners, and follow-up is accessible.
Take it further if you want to — Most meetings need no consultation. If a team pattern keeps recurring, the team climate path may help. DSD staff can request a consultation. · Strengthen team climate (Practice path) — program page /paths/gp-4
What a useful result looks like
Still needs work
Captions turned on with nothing else changed
A round-robin that forces everyone to speak
Notes sent only to the people who were in the room
Ready to use
Materials ahead, several ways to contribute, and decisions with owners
Repair is the responsibility of the person with more power
Follow-up is accessible and asks how it worked
Accessible meeting plan
Meeting name, purpose, and who attends (required)
The meeting, not individual names.
What goes out ahead and when (required)
Purpose, agenda, materials, format, and the accommodation sentence.
Ways people can contribute (required)
Speaking, writing ahead, writing during, following up after, and how written input gets the same weight.
Access arrangements (required)
Captions, interpretation, room or platform access, pace, materials in accessible formats.
How you will handle positional power and repair (required)
Who opens, who speaks last, how you will notice who is not speaking, and what you will do if harm occurs.
What you chose not to assume (required)
About cameras, eye contact, speed, or silence as signs of engagement.
Follow-up date (required)
When accessible notes go out and when you ask how the meeting worked.
Review your notes against
Every follow-up has a named owner
A next review date is set
This is connected to your specific work
Language, disability, and communication access were considered for this work
You named who was involved and the role they had
You noted what you chose not to assume
Questions to bring to Ask
What should I do before, during, and after a team meeting so everyone can actually take part?
How do I run a hybrid meeting where the people online are not an afterthought?
What do I do in the moment when a comment lands badly?