Summer makeover set for College Web site

The College of Arts and Sciences is about to get a bit trendier.

At least, its Web site is.

A redesigned College Web site will launch in early July, right in time for incoming College freshman to begin exploring their options at Penn.

New changes include quick links and information presented in formats that are more easily digestible than long bodies of text.

"We wanted to take advantage of new technologies and, for example, make video tutorials," Director of Academic Advising Janet Tighe said.

The College has been using feedback from various groups, like Peer Advising Managers, SCUE and the Dean's Advisory Board, to perfect the site.

It has also received over 100 e-mails from the undergraduate College population regarding what features should be kept and changed from the old site.

"There are no dancing babies to lure you in, but if the new College Web site can easily show students to their requirements . and accurate information, then our efforts have been well spent,"

said College Publication Coordinator Naomi Kaminsky.

But for some students, the fundamentals are all that matter.

"It's often difficult to navigate the Web site because the search engine isn't that effective," College freshman Emma Rathe said. The College "should take steps to make the Web site more user-friendly and easier to access information."

Kaminsky noted that the College has been "wanting to do Web site changes for awhile," but that the school decided to wait until after the new curriculum for the Class of 2010 had been in place for a year.

"The old site was a well organized version of our print publications, . but we wanted to revise and fix pieces to make them Web site friendly," she said, noting that College officials wanted "a robust search engine and indices that are user-friendly."

Tighe added that the College wanted its Web site to be distinguishable from print materials in addition be being easily accessible.

Assistant deans will assess information on the new site twice a year and there will be daily updates in order to assure accuracy.

And students won't be the only ones to benefit.

"Everyone takes courses in the College, so everyone more or less has to deal with this Web site," Tighe said.

"Both sophomores and parents use the site to access particular sets of information, so we wanted to presort that information so these subpopulations could get what they needed quickly," she said.

"Currently, the site's pages are still being proofread," and last-minute glitches are being tweaked, but the site should be up and running in a little over two months, Kaminsky said.

The College Web site can be found at www.college.upenn.edu.

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