Web Development Case Study
Virginia School for the Deaf
and the Blind
The Virginia School for the Deaf and the Blind provides a superior education
for students who are deaf/hard of hearing, blind/vision impaired, deafblind,
and deaf or blind with other disabilities. Our welcoming, fully-accessible learning environment fosters self-confident students who are contributing citizens
and life-long learners.
At no cost to families, our comprehensive, state-aligned education programs serve students from birth through 21 or until they “age out” of Special Education Services. VSDB’s multi-year high school program expands on the traditional
four-year high school program to provide students access to a full array
of transition services that prepare them for life after graduation.
The Problem
From client meetings with the Virginia School for the Deaf and the Blind (VSDB), we identified areas of improvement (pictured on the right) and began to refine the scope of this project. We quickly identified the website as the primary focus of this project. The website contained largely text-based content in disorganized pages, making it overwhelming and difficult to navigate for most users. In later meetings, we also learned that the website is difficult to maintain and update due to the use of plugins that make adding new content complex and prone to bugs. From this research, we identified visual hierarchy, information architecture, and brand consistency as the main components of the website update.
The Team
The MDMS 528 Project Team was formed in 2022 as part of the curriculum for completing the Master of Arts in Digital Media Strategy program at Bridgewater College. The team was composed of degree candidates with a diverse set of skills and experiences, including expertise in graphic design, project management, and professional writing. Our combined talents and experience ensure that our work was completed to a high standard of quality. Our group took pride in our adaptability, dedicated focus, and creative abilities to bring a client’s vision to life. I served as our team’s Lead for Design and Development.
The Solution
After thoroughly assessing the needs of VSDB, our team has formulated researchbased recommendations for the spring project. Our research indicates that the VSDB website is a crucial touchpoint for the organization among various audiences, so our overall goal for this project is to improve user experience and increase engagement on the VSDB website with three key audiences: prospective families, current families, and special education professionals. In order to reach these audiences and address their needs, we will be pursuing three strategies: optimize existing website content, develop new website content, and develop digital engagement campaigns. The first two strategies will directly contribute towards improving the user’s experience on the VSDB website while the third will help us to achieve increased website engagement. You can read more in-depth about the tactical decisions in the proposal below.