Richfield Public Schools

Creating a Better Website User Experience

"The primary goal for our new website was to provide easy-to-find information," said Jennifer. " Our old website had grown out of control over the years and had evolved into a tangled web of outdated content, 404 errors and great info that was 15 clicks away from the main page and never found by users."

With their redesign, they set a goal of keeping everything one click from the home page. "We did this through a mega-navigation and then creatively organized content on each page using accordions, tabs and section dividers to visually layout content to make it scannable. With a static toolbar on the left, users are always able to navigate to new sections without needing to hit the back button," said Jennifer.

In addition to easy navigation, the district wanted to bring our new brand to life, tell the story of their District and give their schools a marketing edge.

Jennifer frequently uses Finalsite Posts for news updates to keep Richard Public Schools' website's homepage content fresh since school board policies requires website content to be searchable and ADA compliant. The mobile-first design of the main district website and its seven school websites within the district help achieve this goal with easily navigable content and a user-friendly design. 

What Makes Working with Finalsite Special

A Finalsite client and fan for years with seven Finalsite websites across the school district, Jennifer Valley, Richfield Public School Director of Marketing & Communications, said the simple Composer editing tool, huge variety of design options, Finalsite's "amazing support staff, and 6,432,009 other little things" are what she most likes about working with Finalsite. 

Adapting Throughout 2020

"2020 was a year like no other, and providing timely updates for families became more essential than ever," said Jennifer. "We relied heavily on Finalsite Posts to ensure everyone had quick and easy access to the latest information, including our families who do not have/use email. Knowing that they could always find the most up-to-date information right on their school’s website was a relief to us and to them."

Looking Towards the Future with Finalsite

Jennifer said she will use Messages, Constituent Manager, and Forms Manager from Finalsite to continue improving the Richard Public Schools website experience for its school community of more than 4,000 students and their parents. "By providing our families with a mobile-first design and easy to navigate content, we are meeting the needs of our community and looking great at the same time," she said.