Activity
The team holds two conversations. Attendance describes participation, but does not establish that the approach was effective.
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Connect a decision with the people it affects, the knowledge they bring, and the changes that follow.
Program-authored practice informed by the ADSA Outreach and Engagement Guide, April 2026. The original guidance remains unchanged. Follow the applicable agency processes for official work.
An invitation is a beginning. Meaningful engagement also makes room for influence, disagreement, and a response from the people responsible for the decision.
A team is preparing an employment-support learning session. It first proposes a weekday online meeting and an online interest form. Community members explain that the timing conflicts with work, some need communication support, and others have unreliable internet access.
The team holds two conversations. Attendance describes participation, but does not establish that the approach was effective.
The team revises the plan to offer a phone response option, different meeting times, and a way to request communication support. It records which suggestions it could act on and which need another decision-maker.
After the revised session, the team asks whether people could participate in their preferred way and whether the information helped them identify a next step. It checks whose experience is still missing. It does not infer improved employment outcomes from attendance.
Participants receive an accessible summary of what changed, what remains unresolved, and who will follow up. They can correct the summary and explain whether it reflects their contributions.
Fictional employment-planning example
“The online form does not work with my connection.” This is a stated experience to understand, not evidence about everyone.
The team adds a phone response option. Confirm who will answer and what communication support is available.
Ask whether the person could use the new route and identify their next step. Attendance cannot establish an employment outcome.
Share what changed and what remains open. Give contributors a way to correct how their input was represented.
If the phone route is proposed but has no confirmed owner, describe it as unresolved. A contribution becomes influence when an actual choice changes.
These are starting points, not an exhaustive partner list. E1MN documents a state agency partnership. Other listings identify relevant resources, not a claim of a formal DSD agreement. Confirm current services, geographic reach, and arrangements before planning together.
Check the reporting period, population, definitions, and missing data before drawing conclusions. Group differences invite investigation; a dashboard alone does not establish their cause. Use the accessible alternatives offered by the source. Public dashboards are not the internal equity-submission tracker.
Engagement with community organizations does not replace government-to-government Tribal consultation. Seek the appropriate guidance when a decision may have Tribal implications.