Dec. 6, 2005
By John Lympany, CIO

Short Term Goals (Target Date: Feb. 1, 2006)

1. Home Page Portal Links: Make Future Students link and other audience portal links stand out more on the home page (e.g., change font size, use mouseover techniques). (NRCCUA, Berea College’s Report Card, section 1c)
2. Home Page Photos: Gather Brainstorm photos and taglines to create photos for the rotating middle section and make them in-line with the current Admissions materials.
3. Home Page Admissions Section: Jay recommends removing the Distinctly Berean section and replacing it with an Admissions section that contains info and links (such as the Apply Now link).
4. Future Students Sections: Make the navbars contain links to all other major sections. (NRCCUA, Berea College’s Report Card, section 2c)
5. Printer-Friendly Pages (Future Students/Admissions site only): Requires the redesign of the College Web site using CSS-only pages, which in turn can provide a printer-friendly version of a Web page. This initiative will serve as the prototype for sitewide rollout. (NRCCUA, Berea College’s Report Card, section 2f)
6. Apply Now Link: Place an apply now link on both the main Future Students portal page as well as the College home page. This link will point to a page that contains a table for both domestic and international students, where the domestic contains a link directly to the application while the international points to the separate application form. Additional information will be provided on the page for each audience. (NRCCUA, Berea College’s Report Card, section 3a)
7. Organizational Structure of Future Students and Admissions sites: Combine the domestic and international sections as well as the Office of Admissions site with the Future Students portal. If available, integrate the design elements from Brainstorm (photos and colors).
8. Place Key Info on Future Students Main Page: Include a link to Campus Tours, housing info, community info, visiting campus info, admissions criteria, and a box of important dates/deadlines. (NRCCUA, Berea College’s Report Card, section 4)
9. Update Admissions Staff Info: Requires photos to be taken by Public Relations for their contact pages. (NRCCUA, Berea College’s Report Card, section 5b-c)
10. Incoming Students and Guidance Counselors Discussion Board: Available with our community server. Requires a list of topics for the board.
11. Contact Web Form: Use Web form as a contact link that carbon copies messages to both faculty and admissions.
12. Academic Prototype: Select an academic area and develop 4 or 5 additional “collaborative” tasks designed to enhance their web presence to attract prospective students. Take what we learned from this effort to assist other academic areas in better utilizing web features to attract new students.

Long Term Goals (June 1, 2006)

1. Printer-Friendly Pages (Entire Site): Apply the techniques used on the Future Students site to the rest of the College Web site. (NRCCUA, Berea College’s Report Card, section 2f)
2. Sample Demo of Application Process: A static or dynamic demo of the application process will need to be created after the site has been redesigned. Content will need to originate from the Admissions office. (NRCCUA, Berea College’s Report Card, section 3d)
3. Secure credit card transactions. (NRCCUA, Berea College’s Report Card, section 3e)
4. Photos and Slideshows of Campus: Requires assistance from Public Relations. (NRCCUA, Berea College’s Report Card, section 4d)
5. Webcam(s): Resources will be provided by Admissions for hardware and software. (NRCCUA, Berea College’s Report Card, section 4f)
6. Admissions Instant Messaging / Online Chat Availability: Assess resources in Admissions to see if this a feature we can realistically provide. (NRCCUA, Berea College’s Report Card, section 5d)
7. Web Site Analysis and Traffic Flow Study: Research software available and compare with our current statistics software. [Tom and James] Will provide the capability for traffic flow studies.
8. Web Site Search: Research software available and compare with our current search feature. [Tom and James] Move search link to top of all Web pages and make it an input box for quicker access.
9. Ask a Question section: Provides a button/icon on all academic pages that allows users to ask questions. Research expected functionality and outcomes. May require programming. [Tom]
10. Financial Aid estimator: Automated function that may require integration into Banner. Research expected functionality and outcomes.
11. Student Blogs: Available with our community server. Admissions may wish to filter or edit content. Expected outcomes need to be researched first.
12. Content Control and Direct Access: After changes have been made to the Admissions/Future Students site, content control and direct access can be handed over to a designated and trained staff member.
13. Online Prospect Card: Offers profiles of students, faculty, and alumni. May wish to integrate into the Distinctly Berean area and push content to other sections of Web site. Requires programming. [Tom]
14. Housing information: Provide photos and floor plans of all housing options. Research options available to provide 360-degree views of rooms.
15. Search Engine Placement and Visibility Study
16. Search Box: Move to top right, making it an input box. (Requires sitewide CSS compliance.)

Other Long Term Goals (Unknown Target Date and Expected Outcomes; may be objectives for future phases)

1. Career and internship information
2. Newly accepted student portal
3. RSVP for events and open houses
4. Banner integration for all applicants (online and paper – check application status)
5. Ask a current student (in addition to faculty)
6. User defined content
7. Integrate College switchboard and Public Relations to standardized messages. (non-Web)
8. Provide phone sessions to incoming students from Admissions. (non-Web)
9. E-mail template for official correspondence.
10. Send out CDs, Video-CDs, or DVDs to incoming students containing intro movies. (non-Web)