A message from President Alexander Gonzalez:
I am happy to announce the launch today of a more student-focused and user-friendly design for Sacramento State’s website at www.csus.edu. The Office of Public Affairs and Advocacy teamed with Information Resources and Technology as well as with a top local web-design firm to create the new look, which will continue to be rolled out in stages this summer and fall.
The first new pages will include the home page, plus key landing pages, such as those for prospective students and current students. By the start of the fall semester, each of our eight colleges will have a redesigned home page, and Public Affairs and IRT will begin work with divisions and departments to move into the new design.
This project follows extensive research on best practices among universities nationwide, as well as the latest technical innovations. Most important, the work was informed by a series of energetic and detailed focus group sessions with Sacramento State faculty, staff, students, and parents on what they want and need in a new website.
The new design embodies several major improvements:
- A responsive design that will allow users to access the site equally well from all mobile devices, from smartphones to tablets, for a greatly enhanced and satisfying experience.
- A page filled with quick links for each of our eight colleges, plus links to help students explore available majors.
- For our faculty and staff, a well-organized drop-down menu of links to important online information.
- A more attractive and intuitive campus calendar.
- An interactive and robust display of “What’s happening at Sac State,” featuring recent posts, tweets and videos from the University’s wide array of social media channels, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
Going forward, as more of the University’s website moves to the new design, Public Affairs and IRT will continue to innovate and refine it. We’d like to know what you think.