Brand Resources

Table of Contents

Accessible Presentations

A well-designed presentation not only helps ensure that everyone can access and understand your content, but it also increases engagement and improves the overall learning experience.

  1. Clear and Simple Layout: Use a simple layout design. Cluttered slides can be difficult to read and understand. Keep the number of items on each slide to a minimum. Arrange the content in a logical, intuitive order.
  2. Readable Font: Use a sans-serif font such as Verdana or Arial for better readability on screen. The font size should be large enough to be easily read. For main points, 24-28 point font is a good rule of thumb. For subpoints, 18-22 point font is often sufficient.
  3. High-Contrast Colors: Use high-contrast color combinations to ensure readability. For instance, dark text on a light background or vice versa. Be mindful of color blindness. Avoid using red and green together, as this is the most common form of color blindness.
  4. Accessible Visual Elements: Always provide alternative text descriptions for images, charts, and graphs. This will allow screen reader software to describe these elements to visually impaired users. Avoid using color as the only method of conveying information.
  5. Simple and Relevant Graphics: Use clear, simple graphics and avoid overly complex diagrams. Be sure graphics are relevant to the content, and not just decorative.
  6. Clear Navigation: Ensure slides are numbered, and a table of contents or an agenda slide is provided, if possible. Include clear transitions between slides to guide the viewer through the presentation.
  7. Closed Captioning: If your presentation includes videos, ensure they have closed captioning for those who are hearing impaired.
  8. Consistency: Keep styles, fonts, and colors consistent throughout the presentation to avoid confusion.
  9. Language Simplicity: Use plain language and avoid jargon or complex terminology when possible. This is especially important for an audience that may include caregivers and social workers who might not be familiar with certain technical terms.
  10. Test Your Presentation: Run your presentation through PowerPoint’s accessibility checker. This tool will help identify potential accessibility issues that need to be fixed.

Learner Profiles

Learner profiles are used to build a clearer understanding of who the learner we’re designing for is.

You’ll be able to reference these anytime you design a course or deck. This is a great exercise to help anchor accessible design.

Download the worksheet here.

Email Signature

Here are the steps to changing your email signature: 

From the Outlook desktop home page, go to File at the top, then in the left-hand menu click Options

Email signature explainer graphic showing the initial Account Information screen

In the next window, in the left-hand menu, click Mail, then find Signatures in the right pane.

Screenshot of page showing where to find Mail pane

Click the “new” button and name this new signature. (This step required to do Step 5.)

Screenshot of page showing New Signature window

Create the new signature from the brand standards guide in the main window at the bottom half of the window, like pictured below.

Screenshot of page showing New Signature window

When finished, above the main window on the right, click on the New messages drop down and choose this signature (whatever you named it). You may also do the same with the replies/forwards dropdown, or you can use an edited/shortened signature for those.

Click OK at the bottom.

To test, create a new email in Outlook and see if it’s there.

You’re done!

 

Screenshot of page showing New Signature window

PowerPoint Style Guide

To download the PowerPoint template, visit the Templates page.

Logo opening slide

Use this slide at the beginning of every presentation. It can be left on the screen until your presentation begins.

Presentation opening logo slide

Presentation title slides

There are three options for this slide. Use whichever you feel fits the look and content of your presentation.

 

Presentation title slide_alternate 1
Presentation title slide
Presentation title slide_alternate 2

Tribal land acknowledgement

This slide has a recommended land acknowledgement on it, but feel free to adjust the language. 

Tribal Land Acknowledgement slide

Learning objectives

Include this slide at the beginning of training presentations.

Learning objectives slide

Agenda

There are two options for this slide. Use whichever best fits the format of your content.

Agenda slide
Agenda slide with table

Text only, 1 column

This simple slide is used for words-only content.

Content slide one column

Text only, 2 column

This slide can be helpful for showing comparisons or lists.

Content slide two columns

Full bleed graphic, white or blue

This slide is an option for things like quotes, quick points or facts.

Full bleed graphic slide
Full bleed graphic slide with blue bar

One graphic

This slide can be used for illustrating a point with a single large graphic.

Content slide with one graphic

Two graphics

Showcase two graphics side-by-side. The two do not have to be the same size. 

Content slide with two graphics

Section break

Use this type of slide for breaking up sections within a presentation.

Section break slide
Section break slide

Video slide

Insert the video into the slide make it the full height and width. This is the only slide where there is no branded bottom bar.

Video slide

Social media slide

Use this slide during breaks or at the end of a training to encourage learners to follow our social media accounts.

Social media slide

Photos

Alliance photo library (request access)

UW photo library

Free stock imagery

Government sources

Diversity-focused imagery

Artificial Intelligence (AI)-generated imagery

Until use is decided by the courts, The Alliance will not be using Generative AI for creating images. We will continue to use stock photo sites, with the idea that if an image can be sourced or cited, it’s appropriate to use. 

When we say image, we mean photo, illustration or single visual element. Infographics are visualizations of data and different and evaluated on a case-by-case basis. 

Listed below are the most common and consistent reasons for this recommendation:

  • Generative AI Safeguards: Although companies such as ChatGPT’s Dali have added a feature that will not allow the end user to type in the name of an artist and have the program generate an image to use, the source material it draws upon is the issue.
  • Originality and Ownership:
    • Determining the originality of AI-generated content and who owns the copyright — the creator of the AI, the user, or the AI itself — is questionable.
    • The courts have decided that only human-created works are copyrightable, and AI-created works are not. The problem still exists of where and what sources Generative AI is trained with, which tends to be copyrighted materials scraped from the Internet.
    • AI systems trained on copyrighted material may inadvertently produce outputs that are like the original works, leading to potential copyright infringement.
    • The courts need to decide is whether AI-generated content is a derivative work of the original copyrighted material.
    • Existing copyright laws may not be adequately equipped to address the unique challenges posed by generative AI, necessitating updates or new regulations.
    • How generative AI models are trained and used, and holding relevant parties accountable for possible copyright violations is something that is going through the courts right now.
  • Attribution Issues: Properly attributing the sources of the data used to train generative AI models can be complex, especially when the training data is a mix of various copyrighted works.
  • Fair Use: The extent to which AI-generated content falls under fair use is unclear and can vary by jurisdiction, making legal compliance difficult to determine.
  • Content Licensing: AI-generated content may require new licensing standards, which may add an additional layer of complications for content creators and distributors.
  • Economic Impact: How does AI-generated content affect the market value of works and the livelihoods of the humans who have created original works?
  • Moral Rights: There is a need to respect the moral rights of original creators, such as the right to attribution and the right to the integrity of their work, which currently, AI generated content does not provide such information.

With this shared, there are some AI-generated content platforms that may be an exception to this recommendation, but further examination of them is required. Two that have been identified as possible exceptions are:

  • Adobe Firefly
  • Canva

Finally, while there are tools that are in development to provide a layer of digital protection for artists, which provides false information for the AI to scrape, thus maintaining the artist’s original works are protected, the level of use is difficult to determine and when used, it will not affect content that has been already scraped, only new or existing content that the artist uploads.

How to write alt text

Write good Alt Text to describe images — From Harvard University. Examples, resources and testing tools.

Guidance on Writing Alt Text — From University of South Carolina.