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Elizabeth Ralston

Elizabeth Ralston

Elizabeth Ralston is a consultant who guides organizations in the strategic development of an accessibility roadmap, with an emphasis on equity and inclusion. She has over 25 years of experience working with nonprofits, government agencies, and academic institutions. She has a Master of Public Health from the University of Michigan and a certificate of Nonprofit Management from the University of Washington.

Seattle, WA 98117-5521

Contact

Elizabeth Ralston
Direct line: 206-229-4168

Expertise

Advocacy

  • Community organizing

Communications & Marketing

  • Communications
  • Market research, surveys, & focus groups
  • Online strategy
  • Writing & editing

Fundraising & Development

  • Fund development/research

Management & Operations

  • Operations management

Volunteerism

  • Volunteer management
  • Volunteer sourcing
  • Volunteer training

About Elizabeth Ralston

Elizabeth’s expertise is in maximizing organizations’ success through program development, strategic communications, and event implementation, all with an eye on accessibility. She is a published writer, engaging educator, and a seasoned storyteller committed to amplifying the voices of marginalized communities.

Elizabeth is also the Founder of the Seattle Cultural Accessibility Consortium, a grassroots effort to help arts and cultural organizations improve accessibility for their audiences. Her creation of the Consortium emerged from deep listening to the arts and disability communities about the gaps in accessibility. She brings a unique perspective to her work, through her lived experience with a disability.

As a deaf woman who uses cochlear implants to hear, Elizabeth faces accessibility challenges every day. Her hearing loss never stopped her from achieving her life goals. As a Peace Corps Volunteer in Malawi, Africa, she saw first-hand the powerful impact a person can have on others’ lives. She has devoted her life to public service ever since.

Additional Testimonials:
"Elizabeth led us through an accessibility audit of our marketing and communications materials, which increased the visibility of our accessibility offerings internally and externally. With Elizabeth's support and expertise, our website presence, email marketing, and printed materials underwent essential updates, and in addition, Elizabeth ran a very popular all-staff training, from which staff came away thinking more critically and holistically about the organization's accessibility offerings. Elizabeth's work with Seattle Rep has helped us better serve our patrons and staff!" Noelle McCabe, Patron Communications Director, Seattle Repertory Theatre
 
“Elizabeth did an excellent job helping us lay the necessary groundwork to start our accessibility journey. She was particularly helpful in guiding us through the first steps to take as well as creating an outreach plan. Her holistic thinking kept us from focusing too narrowly on the services we were trying to offer. Instead, she guided us to think about how they fit into the larger picture of our institution’s accessibility work. Elizabeth is extremely knowledgeable and responsive, we really appreciate all her insights.” Rachel Spence, Public Programs Manager, MOHAI
 
"Elizabeth was instrumental in supporting the Washington State Budget and Policy Center in learning how to become more inclusive in our events and presentations. She helped us create mindful processes, communications, and materials centering people’s access needs. She was particularly supportive of our events planning staff in furthering our understanding of applying universal design principals for virtual events and gave us tools to think about for future in-person events as well. We’ve been able to adjust our planning lens and approach and build in new practices that center access in ways that are in better alignment with our values as an organization!" April Dickinson, Communications Specialist, Madeleine Krass, Development Manager, and Leit Myers, Operations Manager, WA Budget and Policy Center
 
"Elizabeth’s guidance ensured our team planned a virtual conference experience that was inclusive and accessible. She approached her work with care and expertise, ensuring we focused on progress--not perfection. Her understanding and commitment to accessibility truly made the difference." Alexis Sarah, Arts in Education Project Manager, Washington State Arts Commission
 
"We loved working with Elizabeth to create an approachable and insightful workshop on ableism and moving towards universal design. Our team left with ah-has and eager to learn more. What we especially liked about Elizabeth was how easy it was to connect and collaborate on the design of the workshop." Sarah Olson, Deputy Director, Lynnwood Parks, Recreation & Cultural Arts Department

Background Info.

Subsector Experience

  • Arts and culture
  • Children, youth, and families
  • Disability issues
  • International NGO/ Nonprofit
  • Philanthropy
  • Small grassroots organizations
  • Social services - general
  • Volunteerism

Fee Structure

  • By project
  • Hourly rate

Professional Affiliations / Licenses

  • Certificate in Nonprofit Management

County Availability

  • All WA Counties
  • Nationwide