Website Redesign Emphasizes Storytelling for Stillwater Area Public Schools

Stillwater Area Public Schools kicked off the new year in 2021 with all-new websites for the entire school district. CEL worked with the District and Finalsite to redesign and launch the sites with a mobile-first, ADA-compliant emphasis. Navigation is consistent among the school and district sites for an easier, more fluid user experience. On the district site, a Family Roadmap spans the entire learning experience, from early childhood and beyond. On each school website, a similar roadmap outlines what happens at each grade level in the school. Live text instead of PDFs makes it easier to read on mobile devices.

Stillwater website on desktop, ipad, and iphone
Stillwater Area High School THe Pathway to your Future website

"CEL got us through this crazy time and delivered more than we could have ever expected."

~CARISSA KEISTER, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT MANAGER
carissa keister

New “Learning Hub” Enhances Family Communications for Stillwater Area Public Schools

When all schools in Minnesota went to distance learning in late 2020, Stillwater Area Public Schools realized that students and families needed a single source of information for COVID-related news and learning updates. CEL built a mobile-first microsite that pulled together everything the district needed to communicate, organizing information by school level and providing a COVID dashboard and resources for family support. The COVID dashboard features a decision tree in English and Spanish — embedded into the site from the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) — to help people know what to do if they’re experiencing symptoms. It also presents districtwide data related to positive cases and exposures.

stillwater learning hub homepage on laptop

In keeping with current internet trends, much of the microsite content follows a question/answer format, and rather than relying on PDFs, that information now also displays on the page itself. The instructions were rewritten as easily scannable, step-by-step processes. Instead of columns or big headers, panels of the content offer a fully responsive experience on all devices. Robust search functionality lets users quickly access the information they need.

technology assistance gif on stillwater schools
stillwater learning hub on 5 iphones