CASE STUDY

Website Redesign
Farmingdale State College

PROJECT SUMMARY | 
Complete reprogramming and redesign of the college website.

PROJECT RESPONSIBILITIES | 
Project Lead, Creative Director, Designer, Art Director, UI/UX Designer
 

GOALS | 
Create the college website from the ground up:

• Create a new website from scratch to improve functionality, accessibility, security, and improve user experience. 

• Build a framework design consisting of data and containers so that the website can grow and evolve with future technologies by revising the containers while the data sources remain consistent.

• Reorganize information displayed by the audience to create a curated experience.

• Improve the accessibility rating to meet or exceed the most recent SUNY implemented standards.

• Implementation of a dashboard system for students, faculty, and staff.

• Improve campus event communications.

• Develop a system to separate internal and external information in the website platform.

• Improve the design of the homepage.

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SOLUTIONS | 

• REDESIGN WEBSITE BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE

  • ​The website was created from scratch to build a new system of data and containers so that the website could grow and evolve with future technologies by revising the containers and not having to recreate the data.

  • In its development, all pages were created with responsive templates automatically adjusting for different screen sizes improving the website's viewing experience.

• HOMEPAGE IMPROVEMENTS 

  • The homepage was redesigned to focus on two core principles: Display information and marketing with the prospective student in mind and display items that elevate the profile of the college.

  • A dynamic header video was created to replace the previous static carousel of images. This too was improved by creating several video snippets and editing them to run seamlessly providing the illusion that they are one continuous video while the order randomizes with each visit to the page.

  • Creation and optimization of a module-based design to create a unique and dynamic experience with each visit. Several modules have been programmed to randomize content each time a viewer refreshes the page creating over 3,000 dynamic homepage experiences.

• EVENT PROMOTION

  • The event system was built to integrate with the online campus calendar. Event pages are built and automatically feed the comprehensive campus calendar and also display on a smaller calendar on the myFSC dashboard, and an edited homepage version specifically displaying student-focused activities. The event page template displays a header graphic, event description, date and time of the event, contact information, rsvp links, and offers the capability to add an event to your personal calendar. Additionally, when printing an event page, there is a print template set that provides the capability to print branded flyers and distribute them as needed. The event page system was created so content contributors could add events and elevate the bottleneck of submitting events to any office before they could be posted. Once entered, the event page data then feeds the campus calendar which appears in different formats and areas of the website increasing awareness.

  • Once the event page is created, marketing is alerted and coordinates with the contact person to promote the event on the myFSC dashboard, social media, and digital billboards.

• AUDIENCE CURATION

  • Landing pages created with focused information for prospective students, parents, visitors, and the alumni website.

    • Natural language forms are integrated into webpages to allow users to provide additional information as to which programs they are interested in and the webpage content dynamically changes to provide curated information.​

  • myFSC dashboard developed with data access to user info to curate the event promotion graphics and shortcut links that create a focused and user-centered experience.

• CYBERSECURITY

  • By masking emails and individual phone numbers until a user signs into their dashboard (myFSC), we have decreased the vulnerability to phishing attacks.​

• ACCESSIBILITY​

  • ​Current accessibility standards are built into the design and maintain a 99% rating.

• INTERNAL WEBSITE CREATION

  • ​Replacement of the intranet, maintained by Information Technology, housing 10,000+ documents with an internal website, Aries, that department content creators maintain. 

  • The creation of an internal website also resolved the issue of FSC internal department information and forms displayed on the public site. 

  • With the transformation of the documents to web pages included on Aries the information became accessible and maintenance was simplified.

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RESULTS | 

• SUCCESSES  ​

  • ​myFSC dashboard visits average 30,000+ page views per month and continue to increase as additional useful features are added and offer value to our audiences.

  • The accessibility rating increased from 78% to 99%.

  • Departments report internal website creation has improved interdepartmental relationships and reduced repeat calls or emails requesting information.   

  • Campus events report 200% increases in attendance.

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AWARDS | 

2022 Excellence Award Winner | University & College Designers Association (UCDA)

2021 Excellence in Digital Media, Best of Category | SUNY CUAD

2021 Merit Award Winner | Educational Advertising Awards

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Visit farmingdale.edu to explore the Farmingdale State College website.