Seattle Cultural Accessibility Consortium

As we look back on 2025, the arts sector has faced significant shifts. But at SCAC, we’ve seen that when the community gathers around accessibility, extraordinary things happen.

From launching our inaugural Audio Description Training Program to hosting our largest Deep Dive Day yet, 2025 was a year of building resilience.

Check out our 2025 Year in Review to see what we've accomplished: https://www.seattlecac.org/blog/looking-back-moving-forward-scacs-2025-year-in-review

There is still time to make a difference! Support our mission to make the arts inclusive for everyone by making a year-end donation. Your gift will help us launch our Equipment Loan Program and continue our vital training work.

Donate here: https://bit.ly/SCACShunpike

[ID:
Photo 1: A group of 15 people smiling at camera
Photo 2: A group of 7 people smiling at camera and holding certificates
Photo 3: A group of 11 people smiling at camera in front of a building with a sign that reads Jack Straw Cultural Center
Photo 4: About 10 people sitting a desks with notebooks facing a panel of three people seated at front
Photo 5: A person and an ASL interpreter onstage in front of a seated crowd. A presentation screen at right reads Keynote: Teal Sherer
Photo 6: A group of 7 panelists seated on stage in front of a a crowd. To their left is a moderator at a podium, to their right is an ASL interpreter]

We are excited to share that SCAC's founder and director, Elizabeth Ralston, was recently featured on the Ripple Effect podcast by !

Elizabeth shares her personal journey as a deaf woman and public health professional, challenging the deeply ingrained ableism that makes cultural spaces inaccessible.

"If people with disabilities are not included, that's a huge part of the population that's left out... and arts and culture are places where people congregate around a common theme and they're filled with joy and inspiration and belonging."

It's a call to action for all arts organizations and community spaces!

Listen Here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1AIQ9QVWXVGXs6eItMaLFj?si=hUx59DNIQ4WDODU1fQvJpw
Read the Transcript: https://docs.google.com/document/d/14qysqN4iMgfOjQrJ3M_3seSxsUnOgVDkmgBTShsQ3BA/edit?usp=sharing

ID: Ripple Effect podcast Episode #7, Amplifying Accessibility in the Arts with Elizabeth Ralston, Founder of the Seattle Cultural Accessibility Consortium

Deep Dive Day Recap! So much energy and passion in the room as we connected with our incredible arts and cultural community to champion arts accessibility.

The core message was powerful: securing justice is the struggle, but the ultimate goal is prosperity for all, ensuring genuine freedom of choice in how we engage with culture. This change requires us to start talking about it, normalizing it. By working together, we reinforce that we are a community, not individuals working in silos.

Thank you for bringing your vision and commitment!



[ID:
Image 1: A crowd seated facing a stage, an ASL interpreter and presentation screen is visible.
Image 2: A seated crowd from behind, facing a panel of four speakers on stage, an ASL interpreter stands to the right of the stage.
Image 3: A a white woman with long, wavy blonde hair sits in a wheelchair and laughs into a microphone. Next to her two other panelists smile.
Image 4: On stage behind a podium, a woman with silver hair hugs an an Okinawan man with long dark hair tied back.]