For more information, contact Michael Dawes, 620-792-9307, dawesm@bartonccc.edu

Sept. 10, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Story by: Michael Dawes

Barton Community College launched a new Web site earlier this month that allows for increased generation of relevant content for its stakeholders. The address is the same as before, www.bartonccc.edu, but the Web site is navigation driven compared to Barton’s former site, which was subject driven.

The site is organized by five primary pods, in addition to two smaller pods that have their pages built into various places of navigation of the five primary pods. The pod concept and navigation was researched, planned and outlined by Interact Communications, Onalaska, Wis., which specializes in promotions for two-year colleges.

The primary pods are Prospective Students, Current Students, Careers & Training, Services for the Military Community, and Community Info & College Events. Smaller pod sections are located in the footer at the bottom left of the page. Those pods are Administration and Instruction.

Within the pods, information is shared where that content is deemed relevant to the various types of users. That way information is entered only once so content is controlled and workload is diminished. Shared content also means Web visitors have a better chance of finding the information they are searching for within any of the pods, no matter where they enter the site. There is also a Pico Search option to aid visitors in finding pages. They can limit their searches within the pod, or search site wide.

Utilizing a Content Management System, Barton is able to provide simple controls to approximately 60 Web contributors for Web building and maintenance, while keeping design and function similar across the Web site. The new site, which currently exceeds 5,000 pages, allows for more Web contributors to upkeep the Web site so that relevant information is disseminated to stakeholders on a regular basis. The already-large site doesn’t include Barton’s Athletics Web site, which will significantly grow the CMS site when it makes the Web switch next year.