Agency Redesigns Website for a Hybrid 2-Year, 4-Year and Trade College

A college website is its digital soul, the heartbeat of its brand, and often the deciding factor for prospective students exploring their next step. Our SUNY Alfred State College’s recent website redesign exemplifies how a modern, student-centered digital experience can elevate an institution’s story while improving usability for every audience it serves.

Key Challenges

The old site faced several challenges:

• Outdated information architecture leading to deep navigation paths.
• Fragmented program offerings which made it difficult to know the breadth of its academic programs.
• Inconsistent academic program pages with no unified content model.
• A dated design that did not reflect Alfred State’s applied-learning identity.
• Limited mobile usability and slow load times.
• Decentralized content publishing with inconsistent governance.
• A CMS structure that made updates difficult and bloated.

Key Transformations

1. A Bold, Career-Focused Brand Experience

Alfred State has always been known for its hands-on applied learning and strong career pathways. The new website brings that identity to life. From messaging that foregrounds job-ready skills to dynamic program pages aligned with industry pathways, the redesign ensures that Alfred State’s brand promise is unmistakable the moment a visitor lands on the site.

2. A Powerful Homepage That Conveys “State of the College”

Is strategically declares who the college is at this moment and who it intends to become. it reveals the institution’s priorities, its promise, and the path it is committing to. And it does with radical clarity, stripping away the unnecessary, elevating what matters, and creating an experience so intuitive that visitors feel the college’s purpose before they read a single word.

3. Research-Driven Information Architecture

We conducted analytics reviews, heatmap analysis, competitor benchmarking, and stakeholder interviews. The resulting IA focused on the core user journeys of prospective students, families, and current students, reducing pathway depth and improving findability.

4. Elevated Storytelling Through Photography and Video

The redesign gives Alfred State’s community the spotlight. High-impact photography showcases real students in authentic learning environments, while strategically placed videos highlight campus life, facilities, and outcomes. The visuals work together to tell a cohesive story of a college where learning happens by doing.

5. Streamlined Academic Program Exploration

Academic programs sit at the center of the student journey. The redesigned program finder makes exploration of its 86 2-year, 4-year and credential programs intuitive, fast, and meaningful. Clear filters, human-friendly language, and consistent page layouts help prospective students quickly understand degree options, outcomes, and next steps — no more digging for essential information.

6. Structured Content Model for Academic Programs

All program pages were rebuilt using a field-driven template with standardized sections (program description student experiences, program details, skills students will learn, related facilities, outcomes, pathways, faculty, admissions requirements, and related programs). This enabled consistency, SEO/AIO gains, easier updates, and integration with a new program finder.

7. Mobile-First UX & Modern Visual System

A mobile-first design approach ensured thumb-friendly navigation, clean layouts, and improved readability. A refreshed visual identity introduced updated typography, simplified color usage, and flexible content components.

8. A Cleaner, More Accessible Visual System

The website introduces a refreshed visual identity built on simplicity and clarity. A disciplined use of color, typography, and spacing makes the site feel modern without sacrificing the college’s familiar character. The redesign met WCAG 2.2 AA guidelines through improved contrast, semantic markup, structured headings, and ARIA support. This ensures that all users, including those using assistive technologies, can navigate with confidence.

9. Governance & CMS Optimization

We implemented workflow approvals, role-based author permissions, structured components, and alerts for outdated content. Departments can now update pages confidently while maintaining consistency across the site.

10. Future-Ready Technical Architecture

A modular, scalable architecture supports integrations with campus alerts, CRM tools, academic catalogs, event systems, news engine, faculty & staff directory, social media and analytics platforms. A CI/CD pipeline ensures high-quality, low-risk deployments.

Impact

• Faster, clearer program discovery for prospective students
• A  modern, authentic digital identity aligned with Alfred State’s brand
• Improved accessibility and performance scores
• Stronger SEO/AIO through consistent, structured content
• Reduced non-technical content team burden via clearer CMS workflows and reusable components
• A flexible foundation that supports long-term digital growth

If you are seeking a transformative higher education marketing agency or a hybrid 2-yerar, 4-year and trade college website design agency, please see our work and consider partnering with us.