Seattle Information Technology (IT) celebrates diversity, equity, and inclusion every day

Stop by Seattle IT's booth at Seattle's Pridefest at the Seattle Center, Sunday, June 30, 12 -5 p.m.

Happy Pride week Seattle! Here at Seattle IT, we are celebrating the work we do every day to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion. Our primary goal is to guarantee digital access and equity for all customers who use our services - with a special focus on serving historically underserved and underrepresented populations.

Seattle works togetherfor digital equity, to ensure all residents and neighborhoods have the information technology capacity needed for civic and cultural participation, employment, lifelong learning, and access to essential services. We collaborate to create opportunities and to reduce and eliminate historical barriers to technology access and use. The City of Seattle began its digital inclusion work in 1996. In July 2020, the Internet for All Resolution 31956 was adopted by the City Council & signed by then Mayor Jenny Durkan.

The Technology Matching Fund program was established in 1997 to support the community's efforts to close the digital divide and encourage a technology-healthy city. Since 1997, more than $7 million has been awarded to community organizations that work to expand technology access, skills, and equipment to residents across Seattle.

Creating equitable, consistent, and accessible information for everyone - Seattle IT is committed to making our digital properties accessible to people with auditory, cognitive, neurological, physical, speech, and visual disabilities. All City staff working on websites and web applications contribute to making these resources accessible. We regularly educate staff and invest in digital accessibility training to keep our staff up to date with accessibility best practices.

Seattle IT is committed to upholding the Race and Social Justice (RSJ) principles of the City of Seattle in all our operations, policies, and projects. Seattle IT project teams conduct comprehensive evaluations known as Racial Equity Toolkits (RETs) and equity assessments for all project and budget proposals to ensure our RSJ objectives are met. These assessments help eliminate biases that could negatively affect our employees, customers, and the communities we serve.

A volunteer group of Seattle IT employees serves as our RSJ Change Team. These employees are passionate about seeing change both internally and externally. Their focus is on equitable outcomes for both Seattle residents through the services we provide and for employees through their work environment.

To learn more about digital equity programs like the Technology Matching Fund Grant program, reduced-cost cable and internet opportunities, and other programs, visit www.seattle.gov/tech. Seattle IT is a trusted partner that provides secure, reliable, and compliant technologies, enabling the City to deliver equitable and responsive services to the public.