Energy Code Outreach & Accessibility Specialist 2026P-0433
Ascension is seeking an Energy Code Outreach & Accessibility Specialist to support Montgomery County Department of Permitting Services’ Energy Code Information Technology, Services, and Consulting effort. This role will help the County improve how it communicates energy code requirements, grant program information, technical assistance resources, and code-cycle performance information to industry professionals, residents, stakeholders, and the public.
This position is important because the County’s energy code program depends not only on technical compliance, but also on clear, accessible, user-friendly communication. The selected specialist will help translate technical energy code, permitting, reporting, and program information into public-facing materials that are easier to understand, visually effective, and compliant with accessibility requirements. The RFP specifically identifies the need to create and enhance guidance documents, support outreach events and surveys, produce consumer-level reports, evaluate outreach effectiveness, and ensure marketing materials meet accessibility requirements.
Summary of the Contractor Role
The Energy Code Outreach & Accessibility Specialist will support the development, refinement, and accessibility review of outreach materials, public-facing reports, guidance documents, surveys, event materials, visual content, and web-based communications related to Montgomery County’s building energy code initiatives. The ideal candidate should be a strong writer, editor, visual communicator, and accessibility-focused content developer who can make technical information understandable to non-technical audiences.
The candidate should be detail-oriented, organized, responsive, and comfortable working in a task-order environment where assignments may vary in size, timing, and complexity. This person should be able to work independently, manage multiple deliverables, coordinate with technical staff, and ensure that all materials are clear, consistent, accessible, and suitable for public release.
The role will require strong knowledge of plain language writing, stakeholder outreach, digital accessibility, Section 508/ADA principles, accessible Microsoft Word and PDF preparation, captioning, alt text, keyboard navigation, and content quality control. Familiarity with energy efficiency, building codes, sustainability, climate programs, permitting, or local government communications is preferred.
Expected Day-to-Day / Task-Based Activities
• Develop and improve public-facing energy code guidance documents, fact sheets, reports, outreach materials, surveys, event materials, graphics, and web content.
• Translate technical energy code, permitting, and compliance information into plain-language content for residents, building owners, industry professionals, and public stakeholders.
• Create user-friendly visualizations, charts, graphics, tables, and presentation content to help explain code-cycle progress, grant objectives, compliance trends, and program outcomes.
• Support community outreach events, stakeholder meetings, public education activities, surveys, and engagement campaigns.
• Prepare consumer-level reports that communicate energy code performance, renewables, electrification, compliance pathways, and progress toward grant objectives.
• Review Microsoft Word documents, PDFs, slide decks, web materials, and graphics for accessibility compliance.
• Add and verify alt text for images, charts, graphs, tables, and other non-text content.
• Support captioning, transcript development, and accessibility checks for audio/video or multimedia content, as needed.
• Check documents and web-based materials for keyboard navigation, reading order, headings, link text, color contrast, and screen-reader usability.
• Coordinate with technical SMEs, data analysts, policy consultants, and project management staff to ensure outreach content is accurate and aligned with County objectives.
• Assist with survey development, survey distribution support, and review of outreach/training effectiveness data.
• Edit and proofread outreach content for clarity, consistency, tone, grammar, formatting, and public readability.
• Maintain version control for outreach materials, reports, and accessibility review comments.
• Support quality control reviews before materials are submitted to the County or released to the public.
How to Apply
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| Job Category | Communications |
| MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS | Bachelor’s degree in Communications, Marketing, Public Relations, English, Journalism, Graphic Design, Public Policy, Environmental Studies, Sustainability, Information Design, or a related field | Strong writing, editing, proofreading, and plain-language communication skills. |
| REQUIRED SKILLS | Minimum of 3 years of experience developing public-facing communications, outreach materials, reports, web content, guidance documents, or stakeholder engagement products. |
| TECHNICAL SKILLS | Demonstrated experience preparing accessible digital documents, including Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and PDF materials. | Working knowledge of Section 508, ADA digital accessibility principles, WCAG concepts, accessible PDFs, alt text, captions, heading structure, reading order, and keyboard navigability. | Experience creating or improving guidance documents, reports, handouts, event materials, surveys, presentations, graphics, or other stakeholder-facing materials. | Proficiency with Microsoft 365, including Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Teams, and SharePoint. | Ability to work independently, meet deadlines, manage multiple assignments, and coordinate with technical and non-technical stakeholders. | Ability to support occasional meetings, outreach events, or public engagement activities, including possible onsite support in Montgomery County, Maryland. |
| DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS | Experience supporting local government, state government, federal grant programs, public-sector communications, sustainability programs, energy efficiency programs, or building code-related initiatives. | Familiarity with building energy codes, green building, climate action programs, electrification, renewable energy, permitting, inspections, or technical assistance programs. | Experience with Adobe Acrobat Pro accessibility tools, Adobe Creative Cloud, Canva, Microsoft Accessibility Checker, SharePoint pages, Power BI visuals, or web content management systems. | Experience developing accessible charts, infographics, dashboards, public reports, newsletters, fact sheets, or training/outreach materials | Familiarity with WCAG 2.1 or 2.2, PDF/UA, plain language standards, and accessibility remediation workflows. | Experience supporting multilingual public communications or coordinating translation-ready materials | Experience designing and evaluating surveys, outreach campaigns, public education sessions, or stakeholder feedback processes. | Professional certifications or training such as IAAP CPACC, DHS Section 508 Trusted Tester, Adobe Acrobat accessibility training, PMP, CAPM, Prosci, or related communications/accessibility credentials. |
| SUITABILITY/SECURITY REQUIREMENTS | No specific security clearance is identified for this role in the RFP. However, the contractor may be required to follow Montgomery County information security procedures, protect County data, and use reasonable security practices when accessing County information systems or databases. The RFP also notes that contractors may be afforded remote access privileges and must protect information systems and electronic data assets from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, modification, or destruction |