VM General — Editor & Admin Guide

How content works here

Pages are built in the standard WordPress editor (Gutenberg) by stacking blocks. Most of the design comes from custom theme blocks — pre-styled sections you fill with text, images and links. Larger content (news, team members, videos, etc.) lives in dedicated content types you manage from the left admin menu.

What you'll find in this guide

Content blocks — every theme block you can add to a page, with a screenshot and a field-by-field description.
Content types — News, Actions, Team, Videos and Quotes: where you add them and what each field means.
Categories & tags — how items are grouped and filtered.
Site settings — the global General options screen (logo, menus, footer, contact, pop‑up).

Two ways to fill a block. Theme blocks open a settings form on the right (the ACF fields described in this guide). A few blocks also accept inner blocks — meaning you drop other blocks inside them.

Fields that appear on almost every block

To avoid repeating them, here are the shared fields you'll see on most theme blocks:

Field	Type	What it does
Title	Rich text	The heading shown at the top of the block. Supports basic formatting. (Not present on Body Text, Marquee slider and Quote slider.)
ID	Text	Optional anchor for the section. If you type e.g. `our-team`, you can link to it on the same page with `#our-team`. Leave empty if not needed.
Button	Link	A WordPress link picker — choose a page or paste a URL, set the label and (optionally) "open in new tab".
Spacing & alignment	Block toolbar	In the right sidebar you can adjust top/bottom padding and margin, and set the block to wide or full width.

Good to know: many blocks only appear on the page once their required fields are filled. For example Call to Action stays hidden until Title, Text and Button are all set. If a block "disappears", check that its mandatory fields are complete.

Standard blocks you can also use

Alongside the theme blocks, only a curated set of core WordPress blocks is allowed, to keep pages on‑brand:

Paragraph · Heading · Image · Buttons · List · Quote · Separator · Spacer · Columns / Column · Reusable block.

Interactivity is automatic

You don't configure any "behaviour" — the theme wires it up for you once the content is in place:

Sliders (Quote slider, Cards) and the Marquee scroll on their own.
Accordions open/close on click; the audio player plays one recording at a time.
Videos only load after the visitor presses play, using the featured image as the poster.
Posts Filters handles search, the category dropdowns and "load more" automatically.
Sections gently fade in as the visitor scrolls.

Content blocks

These are the theme blocks available in the editor (look for the "theme" category when you add a block). Jump to one:

Hero Body Text Call to Action Full‑Width CTA Box Cards Highlight Cards Listing Two‑Column Heading + Text Large Quote Quote Slider Marquee Slider Image with Accordions Accordion Podcast Embedded Form Posts Filters Section with Side Menu

Hero acf/hero

The large intro section at the top of a page: a heading, supporting text, an optional button and a side image.

Hero block

Field	Type	How to fill it
Titlerequired	Rich text	The main heading. The block only shows once this is filled.
Text	Rich text	Intro paragraph under the heading.
Button	Link	Optional call‑to‑action link.
Image	Image	Optional picture shown beside the text.
Image size	Select	Shape of the image: Large, Small or Vertical.
Hero background	Select	Dark or Light background style. Default: Dark.

Body Text acf/body-text

A simple, comfortably‑width column of rich text — for articles and longer copy — with an optional button underneath.

Body Text block

Field	Type	How to fill it
Textrequired	Rich text	Your main copy (headings, paragraphs, lists, links). The block is hidden if this is empty.
Button	Link	Optional button below the text.

Note: the settings form also shows With menu and Image fields, but this layout only renders the Text and Button. Leave the other two empty.

Call to Action acf/call-to-action

A two‑column prompt: a short heading on the left, text and a button on the right.

Call to Action block

Field	Type	How to fill it
Titlerequired	Rich text	The left‑hand heading.
Textrequired	Rich text	The supporting copy on the right.
Buttonrequired	Link	The action button.

All three fields are required. The block stays hidden until Title, Text and Button are all filled.

Full‑Width Call‑to‑Action Box acf/full-width-call-to-action-box

A full‑width highlighted box on a light background — same idea as Call to Action, but bolder and edge‑to‑edge.

No screenshot supplied for this block yet. It mirrors the Call to Action layout in a full‑width box.

Field	Type	How to fill it
Titlerequired	Rich text	Heading on the left.
Textrequired	Rich text	Copy on the right.
Buttonrequired	Link	The action button.

All three fields are required for the block to appear.

Cards Highlight acf/cards-highlight

A grid of content cards (with image, tags, title and excerpt) introduced by a heading and a button. Pull cards in automatically, or pick them by hand.

Cards Highlight — heading + "view all" button + card grid

Same block, different content (cards with category tags)

Field	Type	How to fill it
Title	Rich text	Heading above the cards.
Pre title	Text	Small label above the heading.
Text	Rich text	Short intro paragraph.
Button	Link	e.g. "View all actions".
Button position	Select	Bottom or Top right.
Cards type	Select	Which content to show: News, Actions, Team or Video.
Cards auto	Toggle	On → automatically show the latest items of the chosen type. Off → pick items by hand in Cards below.
Cards count	Number	How many cards to show when Cards auto is on. Empty = show all.
Cards	Relationship	Hand‑pick the exact items (used when Cards auto is off).

Tip: use Cards auto for "latest news" style sections, and turn it off when you want to feature specific items in a specific order.

Cards Listing acf/cards-listing

Same idea as Cards Highlight, but used for people/team‑style cards and with an extra option to filter by a Team category.

Cards Listing block

Field	Type	How to fill it
Title	Rich text	Heading above the cards.
Pre title	Text	Small label above the heading.
Text	Rich text	Short intro paragraph.
Button	Link	Optional button.
Button position	Select	Bottom or Top right.
Cards type	Select	News, Actions, Team or Video.
Cards auto	Toggle	On = latest items automatically; Off = pick by hand.
Cards count	Number	How many to show in auto mode.
Cards types	Taxonomy	Optional — limit the auto list to one Team category.
Cards	Relationship	Hand‑picked items (auto off).

Two‑Column Heading with Text acf/two-column-heading-with-text

A heading in the left column and rich text in the right, optionally with a side image, a button and social links.

Two‑Column Heading with Text

Field	Type	How to fill it
Titlerequired	Rich text	The heading (left column).
Textrequired	Rich text	The body copy (right column).
Pre title	Text	Small label above the heading (only shown in the no‑image layout).
Image	Image	Optional side image. Adding one switches to the image layout.
Image position	Select	Left or Right — which side the image sits on.
Button	Link	Optional button under the text.
Follow socials	Toggle	When on, shows social icons taken from Site settings → Footer → Follow links.
Background	Select	Dark or Light section background. Default: Dark.

Layouts: no image = heading + text; with image you choose left or right placement. Title and Text are always required.

Large Quote acf/large-quote

A single emphasised quotation with an optional photo and author name.

Large Quote block

Field	Type	How to fill it
Textrequired	Rich text	The quote itself. The block is hidden if empty.
Author	Text	Who said it.
Image	Image	Optional portrait shown with the quote.
Image position	Select	Top or Bottom — where the image sits relative to the quote. Default: Top.

Quote Slider acf/quote-slider

A carousel of quotes. The content comes from the Quotes content type — each slide shows the person's photo, name, the quote and its tags.

Quote Slider block

Field	Type	How to fill it
Quotesrequired	Relationship	Pick the Quote entries to show, in order. Create them first under Quotes in the admin menu.
With menu	Toggle	Optional layout switch.

Each slide is built from a Quote entry: photo = featured image, name = title, quote text = the entry content, tags = Quote Tags. Edit the wording on the Quote entry itself, not here.

Marquee Slider acf/marquee-slider

A large line of text that scrolls horizontally across the screen, like a ticker.

Marquee Slider block

Field	Type	How to fill it
Text	Text	The phrase that scrolls across.
Slider height	Select	Low or High band height. Default: Low.

Image with Accordions acf/image-with-accordions

An image on one side and a set of expandable accordions (question/answer style) on the other.

Image with Accordions block

Field	Type	How to fill it
Imagerequired	Image	The side image. The block needs this to show.
Accordionsrequired	Repeater	Add as many rows as you need. Each row has a Title, a Text and an optional Button. Rows without a title and text are skipped.
Title	Rich text	Heading above the accordions.
Text	Rich text	Intro paragraph.
Button	Link	Optional button below the accordions.
Image position	Select	Left or Right.

Accordion acf/accordion

A plain list of expandable rows (FAQ / "read more" style), with no image. Each row opens and closes on click.

Field	Type	How to fill it
Title	Rich text	Optional heading above the rows.
Accordionsrequired	Repeater	One row per item, each with a Title and a Text. Rows missing either are skipped — so an empty block shows nothing on the page.
Add to side menu	Toggle	If the page uses a Section with Side Menu, include this section in that menu.
ID	Text	Optional anchor for linking to this section (e.g. `#faq`).

Need an image next to the rows? Use Image with Accordions instead.

Podcast acf/podcast-embed

An audio player card for a podcast or recording.

Podcast block

Field	Type	How to fill it
Audiorequired	File	Upload or pick the audio file. The player is hidden if empty.
Name	Text	Person's name on the card. Hidden if left empty.
Role	Text	Role/office, e.g. "U.S. House of Reps".
District	Text	District, e.g. "CA‑37". Shown next to the role.
Years	Text	Years line, e.g. "2023, 2024".

Now fully editable: the card's name, role, district and years are real fields — fill them per block. Each one is optional and simply hidden when empty.

Embedded Form acf/embedded-form

Drops in an external embed — typically a donation form or any third‑party widget that gives you an <iframe> snippet.

Embedded Form — e.g. a donation widget

Field	Type	How to fill it
Iframe	Text area	Paste the full embed code (the `<iframe …>` snippet) the provider gives you.

Paste the code exactly as provided. Don't add extra characters around it.

Posts Filters acf/posts-filters

A self‑service archive: a searchable, filterable grid of News or Actions with a "load more" button. Filters (the dropdowns) are generated automatically from the categories/tags of the chosen content type.

Posts Filters block

Field	Type	How to fill it
Title	Rich text	Heading above the filter bar.
Post Type	Select	What to list: News or Actions. Default: News.

The search box, the filter dropdowns and "load more" all work automatically — you only choose the content type and a heading.

Section with Side Menu acf/section-with-sidemenu

A two‑part layout: a sticky navigation menu on the side and a content area where you place other blocks inside.

No standalone screenshot supplied — this is a container layout you fill with other blocks.

Field	Type	How to fill it
Menu	Repeater	Add the side‑menu items, each as a Link (label + target, usually an in‑page `#anchor`).
(content)	Inner blocks	Inside the block, add the sections that the side menu links to. Give each its ID so the menu can jump to it.

Content types

These are the entries you manage from the left‑hand admin menu. Each one has its own list and "Add new" screen. Below: where to find each field and what it controls. Jump to one:

News (Posts) Actions Team Videos Quotes

Content type News post

The standard WordPress "Posts" — used as the site's News / Media Center articles.

How a single News article opens — hero with title, category, author and date

Field	Type	What it controls
Title	Built‑in	Article headline.
Content	Editor	The article body — built with the same blocks described in this guide.
Excerpt	Built‑in	Short summary shown on cards/listings.
Featured image	Built‑in	The hero/card image.
Author	Text	Displayed author name in the hero ("by …").
Theme	Text	Optional topic label.
File	File	Optional attachment/download.
External Url	URL	If set, cards for this article link out to this address (opens in a new tab) instead of the article page.
Yt url	URL	A YouTube/Vimeo/MP4 link — when present, the hero shows a video player instead of the image.
Header background	Select	Dark or Light page header style.

Grouping: Categories — shown as chips in the hero and used by the Posts Filters block.

Content type Actions actions

Campaign / advocacy items — often with a downloadable report. They open on their own page with a "Download report" and "Share" bar.

A single Action page uses the same hero layout as News (title, tag chips, date, image)

Field	Type	What it controls
Title	Built‑in	Action title.
Content	Editor	Body of the action page.
Excerpt	Built‑in	Summary on cards.
Featured image	Built‑in	Hero / card image.
File	File	The report to download. Used first for the "Download report" button.
File url	URL	Alternative download link if the report is hosted elsewhere (used when File is empty).
Header background	Select	Dark or Light header style.

Grouping: Themes, Issues, Actions Tags — Themes and Issues show as chips in the hero and feed the filters.

Content type Team team

People — staff and board members. Each has a profile page (unless disabled) and appears as a person card across the site.

A single Team member page — name, pronouns, role, social links and photo

Field	Type	What it controls
Title	Built‑in	Person's full name.
Content	Editor	Bio shown on the profile page.
Featured image	Built‑in	Portrait photo. If none, the card shows the person's initials instead.
Type	Select	Staff or Board.
Pronouns	Text	e.g. "she/her".
Role/Title	Text	Job title shown under the name.
Initials	Text	Override the auto initials used when there's no photo.
LinkedIn	URL	LinkedIn profile link (icon on the page).
Instagram	URL	Instagram profile link (icon on the page).
Text	Rich text	Additional text field.
Disable single page?	Toggle	When on, the card is not clickable and the person has no profile page.
Order	Page attributes	Use the "Order" box to control the sequence in listings.

Grouping: Team Categories — used to filter people in the Cards Listing block. Each Team Category can also set a "Back to About link" so this person's "Back to About" button jumps to the right section.

Photo shape: when a person has neither a LinkedIn nor an Instagram link, their hero photo is shown as a square; with at least one social link it keeps the taller portrait crop.

Content type Videos video

Video entries. They can play a YouTube/Vimeo link or an uploaded file, and open on a centered video page.

A single Video page (video in the hero)

How a video appears with a poster & play button

Field	Type	What it controls
Title	Built‑in	Video title.
Content	Editor	Description / body.
Excerpt	Built‑in	Summary on cards.
Featured image	Built‑in	The poster/thumbnail shown before play.
External video	URL	A YouTube or Vimeo link.
Local video	File	Or upload an MP4/WebM/OGG file instead.
Header background	Select	Dark or Light header style.

Provide either an external link or a local file. Supported sources: YouTube, Vimeo, or an uploaded .mp4 / .webm / .ogg file. The featured image acts as the poster, and the video only loads after the visitor clicks play (keeps the page fast).

Content type Quotes quote

Reusable testimonials. You don't place these on a page directly — instead they feed the Quote Slider block.

See the Quote Slider screenshot for how these are displayed.

Field	Type	What it controls
Title	Built‑in	The person's name (shown under the quote).
Content	Editor	The quote text itself.
Featured image	Built‑in	The person's photo on the slide.

Grouping: Quote Tags — shown as small tags on each slide.

Categories & tags

These group your content and power the filter dropdowns and the chips shown on cards and hero sections. You manage their terms under each content type's submenu.

Name	Applies to	Style	Used for
Categories	News	Hierarchical	Chips in the News hero; filter dropdown in Posts Filters.
Themes	Actions	Tags	Chips in the Action hero; filtering.
Issues	Actions	Tags	Chips in the Action hero; filtering.
Actions Tags	Actions	Tags	Extra tagging for actions.
Team Categories	Team	Tags	Filtering people in the Cards Listing block.
Quote Tags	Quotes	Tags	Small tags shown on each quote slide.

Tip: create the terms you need first, then assign them on each entry's edit screen (right‑hand panel). Empty categories don't show up in the front‑end filters.

Team Categories — "Back to About link": open a term under Team → Team Categories and you'll find an optional Back to About link field. Point it at a section of the About page — e.g. /about/#staff, where staff is the ID you set on the matching section block on the About page. Every team member in that category then gets a "Back to About" button that jumps straight to their section instead of the top of the page. You can also give the link a label to change the button text (otherwise it stays "Back to About"). Leave it empty to fall back to the global Page about setting. If a person is in several categories, the first one's link is used.

Site settings — General options

Global content that appears on every page lives here. In the admin, open General options (top‑level menu added by the theme). It's organised into four tabs.

Header tab

Field	Type	What it controls
Logo	Image	Main site logo (used on light headers).
Logo dark	Image	Alternate logo used on dark headers and on News/Team pages.
Tabs menu	Repeater	The top‑level section tabs (each a Link). Switching between these can trigger the confirmation Modal.
Button menu	Link	The highlighted button in the header (e.g. "Donate").

Where the dropdown navigation lives: the main expandable menu (with sub‑items) is a normal WordPress menu — edit it under Appearance → Menus, assigned to the Main Menu location. The Tabs menu field above is only the row of top‑level section tabs.

Footer tab

Field	Type	What it controls
Lobby page link	URL	Link used in the footer.
Newsletter title	Text	Heading above the newsletter sign‑up.
Newsletter text	Text	Supporting copy for the newsletter.
Contact emails	Repeater	One or more contact email addresses (each row = an Email).
Follow links	Repeater	Social links — each row has a Link and an Icon image. Also reused by the "Follow socials" option on the Two‑Column block.
Partner menu	Repeater	Partner/secondary links (each row = a Link).
Privacy link	Link	Link to the privacy policy.
Address	Text area	Postal address shown in the footer.

Pages tab

These tell the theme which page is the "home" for each section — used by the "Back to …" buttons on single pages.

Field	Type	What it controls
Page for actions	Page	Target of "Back to Actions" on a single Action.
Page for news	Page	Target of "Back to Media Center" on a single News article.
Page about	Page	Default target of "Back to About" on a single Team member. Each Team Category can override this with its own deep link — see Categories & tags.

Modal tab

Content for the confirmation pop‑up shown when a visitor switches between the main header sections (an "are you sure you want to leave?" style dialog).

Field	Type	What it controls
Content	Rich text	The pop‑up message.
Buttons	Repeater	One or more buttons. Each row has a Link and a Button type (White, Dark or Bright).

Important for the two action buttons: set the link to #modal-cancel for the "stay / dismiss" button and #modal-confirm for the "continue" button. Any other target is treated as a normal link.