San Francisco Bay Chapter of the Society for Technical Communication

Speaker: Ace Howard

About the program

Accessibility around communication is not “nice to have,” but is a requirement.

When a company isn’t mature enough to be compliant with accessibility standards set by the ADA and Section 508, the best course of action is to submit a proposal and escalate it to the appropriate folks in leadership.

However, in the meantime, we as technical communicators must take the initiative to apply changes to our style guides and acceptance criteria to push our teams and stakeholders toward accessibility compliance. Then, when the official policy changes finally happen, the company will already have a base level of alignment.

This presentation is about the low-hanging fruit that we can harvest in the liminal space before any official policy changes are rolled out.

About the speaker

Ace Howard is a human based in San Francisco, CA. He currently works as a technical writer at Crunchyroll, where he also serves as a leader in Anime Enabled, an employee resource group focused on improving equity and inclusion efforts for people with disabilities.

Ace enjoys frogs, the color red in moderation, and art in most forms.

Event Info

Time: Wednesday, April 12, 2023, at 6:30 PM Pacific

Location: Zoom

Program:
6:30 to 7:00: Networking
7:00 to 7:25: Announcements
7:30 to 8:30: Presentation
8:30 to 8:45: More networking
~ 8:45: End the Zoom meeting

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86388481798

Meeting ID: 863 8848 1798
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Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kbgkbQ7Fph

Important notes:

• Members of other chapters welcomed. If you belong to another STC chapter, you can attend our meetings.
• IABC members welcome. All members of the San Francisco Chapter of the IABC are welcome to register for Berkeley STC General Meetings.
• Non-members can attend. You don’t have to be a member to attend our meetings.
• Tell us if you’re hiring or job-hunting. Attendees are encouraged to announce open positions or to announce that they are searching for work. Feel free to bring job listings, resumes, or business cards for distribution.

About the program

A roomful of technical communicators is seldom at a loss for ideas or opinions, and that goes for a Zoom-roomful as well. So join us for a lively and wide-ranging exploration.

Relevant articles:

• Tech Layoffs Shock Young Workers. The Older People? Not So Much. – NY Times
• Google, Microsoft, Amazon and other tech companies have laid off more than 70,000 employees in the last year – CNBC
• Here are the latest tech layoffs as the industry shudders – CBS News
• Tech Layoffs: U.S. Companies That Have Cut Jobs In 2022 and 2023 – Crunchbase

Discussion questions:

• Is there anyone who’d like to share layoff experiences?
  • Were there organizational signs at your company, or were you surprised?
  • What are ways to prepare in case it happens?
  • How did you market yourself post-layoff as you applied to positions?
  • What did you learn along the way?

• Are there trends as to what industries are hardest hit by layoffs? Are some more stable than others?
• How do you make your value visible in an organization?
• How can you use layoffs to pivot your career to a new industry or type of tech comm work?

We look forward to seeing you there.

Event Info

Time: Wednesday, February 8, 2023, at 6:30 PM Pacific

Location: Zoom

Program:
6:30 to 7:00: Networking
7:00 to 7:25: Announcements
7:30 to 8:30: Open discussion
8:30 to 8:45: More networking
~ 8:45: End the Zoom meeting

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86388481798

Meeting ID: 863 8848 1798
One tap mobile
+16699006833,,86388481798# US (San Jose)
+14086380968,,86388481798# US (San Jose)

Dial by your location
        +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
        +1 408 638 0968 US (San Jose)
        +1 669 444 9171 US
        +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
        +1 719 359 4580 US
        +1 253 205 0468 US
        +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
        +1 646 876 9923 US (New York)
        +1 646 931 3860 US
        +1 689 278 1000 US
        +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
        +1 305 224 1968 US
        +1 309 205 3325 US
        +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
        +1 360 209 5623 US
        +1 386 347 5053 US
        +1 507 473 4847 US
        +1 564 217 2000 US
Meeting ID: 863 8848 1798
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kbgkbQ7Fph

Important notes:

• Members of other chapters welcomed. If you belong to another STC chapter, you can attend our meetings.
• IABC members welcome. All members of the San Francisco Chapter of the IABC are welcome to register for Berkeley STC General Meetings.
• Non-members can attend. You don’t have to be a member to attend our meetings.
• Tell us if you’re hiring or job-hunting. Attendees are encouraged to announce open positions or to announce that they are searching for work. Feel free to bring job listings, resumes, or business cards for distribution.

Free Food, Free Books, and Live Entertainment

About the program

Instead of having a December guest speaker via Zoom, we will be hosting an in-person holiday party!

The highlight of the evening will be our creative sharing time. This can take any form: A short story or poem you’ve written, a piece of art, a short video you made, or a craft project, such as a quilt or a sweater. Or you might play some music or rap, or sing a song. We hope you’ll share your talents and passion with us as we come together to celebrate the season! Sharing is completely optional.

Another tradition of our holiday parties is the book exchange. It’s optional, but if you want to participate, bring a new or gently used book, wrapped and unidentified. We’ll have a few extras if you forget but still want to participate. 

Note: We’ve reserved a room with a finite capacity. We’ll try to accommodate everyone who shows up, but it would help if you would let us know you’re coming and let us know if you’re bringing guests. Send email to reservations@stc-berkeley.org to let us know your plans.

If you’d like a ride, or if you’re driving, please send an email to rides@stc-berkeley.org, and we’ll try to introduce drivers and riders. If you’re driving, please tell us when and from where you’re leaving and how many passengers you can take.

Food and non-alcoholic beverages are on us!

There will be no admission charge for this meeting.

See you there!

Event Info

Time: Wednesday, December 14, 2022, at 6:30 PM Pacific

Location: Black Bear Diner, 5100 Hopyard Rd, Pleasanton, CA 94588

Program:
6:30 to 7:15: Networking
7:15 to 8:15: Creative Sharing
8:15: Book exchange and more networking

Important notes:

• Members of other chapters welcomed. If you belong to another STC chapter, you can attend our meetings.
• IABC members welcome. All members of the San Francisco Chapter of the IABC are welcome to register for Berkeley STC General Meetings.
• Non-members can attend. You don’t have to be a member to attend our meetings.
• Tell us if you’re hiring or job-hunting. Attendees are encouraged to announce open positions or to announce that they are searching for work. Feel free to bring job listings, resumes, or business cards for distribution.