Community Engagement Map
Communications Team Guide
How to update the spreadsheet data and manage which sheets appear publicly on the OWFR website.
How to update the spreadsheet data and manage which sheets appear publicly on the OWFR website.
The Community Engagement Map is a searchable, filterable table on the OWFR website that displays community organizations and Patient and Family Advisory Councils (PFACs) the OHT team is connected with or tracking. It is driven entirely by an Excel spreadsheet that staff maintain, so the website always reflects the latest data.
The plugin does three things:
The widget is inserted onto any WordPress page using a single shortcode. In Divi, add a Text or Code module and type exactly:
[owfr_community_map]
That is all that is needed. The plugin handles loading the full table HTML at render time. If the plugin is active and the template file exists, the table will appear automatically.
The Excel file used for the Community Engagement Map contains multiple worksheets. Some sheets hold live public-facing data (like the Community Mapping and Local PFACs tabs). Others — such as the Lists sheet — are reference tables used internally by staff and should not appear on the website.
Go to .
When you upload a spreadsheet that contains a worksheet that has never been seen before, it defaults to enabled (public). After the import you can go to Sheet Settings and turn it off if needed, then re-import.
Sheets you have previously turned off will stay off even when you upload a new version of the spreadsheet — you do not need to re-disable them every time.
Whenever the Community Engagement Map spreadsheet is updated — new organizations added, contacts changed, engagement goals revised — you upload the new file through the admin and the public widget updates instantly.
Go to .
The right-hand panel on the Import Spreadsheet page always shows:
A red error banner will appear with a description. Common causes:
| Error | What to do |
|---|---|
| Only .xlsx files are accepted | Make sure you are saving the file as Excel Workbook (.xlsx) in Excel, not as .xls, .csv, or .ods. |
| Could not parse the Excel file | The file may be password-protected or corrupted. Open it in Excel, remove any password, resave, and try again. |
| Template file could not be written | A server file permission issue. Contact the developer — the template/ folder needs write access. |
| Upload failed (error code X) | The file may be too large for the server's upload limit. Check with the developer if the file is over 10 MB. |
This section covers the complete process from opening the spreadsheet to the updated table appearing live — including the common scenario of needing to hide the reference Lists sheet.
[owfr_community_map] and confirm the new data appears.
The change is immediate — no cache clearing is needed.
The plugin reads whatever is in the Excel file. Following these rules ensures the table displays correctly.
| Rule | Details |
|---|---|
| File format | Must be .xlsx (Excel 2007 or newer). Files in .xls, .csv, .ods, or Google Sheets format will not work. |
| Header row | Row 1 of every worksheet must contain column headers. These become the sticky column headings in the public table. |
| Sheet names | Sheet names become the tab labels in the public widget. Keep them short and descriptive (e.g. Community Mapping, Local PFACs). |
| Hyperlinks | Excel hyperlinks (cells linked via Insert → Link) are automatically converted to clickable links in the table. Plain URLs typed into cells are also auto-linked. |
| Email addresses | Any cell containing a plain email address is automatically turned into a mailto: link. |
| Empty cells | Empty cells display as a dash (—). Completely blank rows are skipped automatically. |
| Long text | Cells whose content visually overflows the row height automatically get a Show more / Show less toggle. No special formatting needed in Excel. |
| Password protection | Do not password-protect the file. The parser cannot open protected workbooks. |
The public widget includes several built-in features that visitors can use without any configuration:
A search box at the top filters all visible rows in real time. Visitors can search by any text in the table — organization name, geography, contact, area of focus, and so on. The row count updates as they type to show how many results match.
Each enabled sheet appears as a tab button at the top of the widget (e.g. Community Mapping and Local PFACs). Clicking a tab switches to that sheet. The search field filters the currently active tab only.
Because the table has many columns, it scrolls horizontally within a fixed container. Floating < and > arrow buttons appear on the left and right edges of the table, letting visitors navigate columns by clicking rather than dragging a scrollbar. A fade gradient on each edge indicates that more columns exist in that direction.
Cells whose content is too long to display in the default row height are clipped automatically. A Show more link appears beneath the clipped text. Clicking it reveals the full content. Clicking Show less collapses it again.
The organization name column stays fixed on the left as visitors scroll right. The header row stays fixed at the top as visitors scroll down. This makes it easy to know which column and which row you are reading at all times.
No. The old table remains live until the new one is fully written. The switch is instantaneous.
No — the import always processes the entire file. All enabled sheets are regenerated together. To update one sheet, save the full Excel file with that sheet updated and re-import the whole file.
Saving sheet settings alone does not update the live table. You must also re-upload the spreadsheet on the page after saving your settings.
Check that you are on the correct tab — search only filters the currently visible sheet. Also check that the row is not in a sheet that has been marked as hidden.
The original spreadsheet had truncated text in those comment cells. Once you import a fresh copy of the spreadsheet with the full comment text, those cells will display completely and will automatically get a Show more button if the content is long.
Yes. Any changes to column headers in row 1 of the spreadsheet will be reflected in the table automatically after the next import. There is no column configuration needed in WordPress.
Only users with the Administrator role in WordPress can see the CE Map menu, upload spreadsheets, or change sheet settings.
Remove or delete the [owfr_community_map] shortcode from the page in Divi.
The plugin and its data are not affected — you can re-add the shortcode at any time.