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ArtsEngine: Multi-Site Web Development
ArtsEngine: Multi-Site Web Development
ArtsEngine: Multi-Site Web Development
Managing, updating, and auditing digital platforms across University of Michigan College of Engineering sites to ensure high usability and full WCAG accessibility compliance.
Managing, updating, and auditing digital platforms across University of Michigan College of Engineering sites to ensure high usability and full WCAG accessibility compliance.
Role: Web Developer
Timeline: Ongoing since October 2024
Tools: WordPress, HTML5/CSS3, WAVE, Accessibility Testing Tools, Trello
Scope of Work: Multi-Site Administration, Client Communication, Weekly Content Operations, WCAG Accessibility
Role: Web Developer
Timeline: Ongoing since October 2024
Tools: WordPress, HTML5/CSS3, WAVE, Accessibility Testing Tools, Trello
Scope of Work: Multi-Site Administration, Client Communication, Weekly Content Operations, WCAG Accessibility
Overview
Overview
As part of the College of Engineering’s web development team, I'm responsible for managing and maintaining a portfolio of 2 to 3 distinct departmental websites each academic year. The main operational challenges include:
Weekly Client Requests: Academic clients frequently need immediate site updates, ranging from structural layout revisions to adding or removing time-sensitive content, events, and resources.
Maintaining Consistency Across Sub-Sites: Managing multiple independent websites for different engineering programs requires keeping layouts organized and aligned with university standards while fulfilling unique client needs.
Ongoing Quality & Accessibility Standards: Every quick update, new page layout, or content revision must continuously maintain strict WCAG accessibility and technical quality standards without delaying client deadlines.
As part of the College of Engineering’s web development team, I'm responsible for managing and maintaining a portfolio of 2 to 3 distinct departmental websites each academic year. The main operational challenges include:
Weekly Client Requests: Academic clients frequently need immediate site updates, ranging from structural layout revisions to adding or removing time-sensitive content, events, and resources.
Maintaining Consistency Across Sub-Sites: Managing multiple independent websites for different engineering programs requires keeping layouts organized and aligned with university standards while fulfilling unique client needs.
Ongoing Quality & Accessibility Standards: Every quick update, new page layout, or content revision must continuously maintain strict WCAG accessibility and technical quality standards without delaying client deadlines.
Workflow & Process
Workflow & Process
To efficiently balance weekly client requests with technical accuracy across multiple client sites, I established a structured management workflow:
Weekly Sprint & Client Communication: Partner directly with non-technical academic stakeholders to translate weekly change requests into clear development tasks and timeline updates.
Collaborative Development Environment: Work alongside the broader developer team to share reviews, standard templates, and maintenance responsibilities.
Accessibility Checks: Embed WCAG compliance testing into every routine content push, ensuring new media, links, and text formatting met university accessibility guidelines before going live.
To efficiently balance weekly client requests with technical accuracy across multiple client sites, I established a structured management workflow:
Weekly Sprint & Client Communication: Partner directly with non-technical academic stakeholders to translate weekly change requests into clear development tasks and timeline updates.
Collaborative Development Environment: Work alongside the broader developer team to share reviews, standard templates, and maintenance responsibilities.
Accessibility Checks: Embed WCAG compliance testing into every routine content push, ensuring new media, links, and text formatting met university accessibility guidelines before going live.
Key Development & Maintenance Actions
Key Development & Maintenance Actions
Active Multi-Site Content Operations:
Manage ongoing content updates, page redesigns, and site architecture revisions across assigned College of Engineering web properties throughout each academic year.
Reorganize legacy page structures to make navigation intuitive for students, faculty, and visiting researchers searching for interdisciplinary grants and programs.
Active Multi-Site Content Operations:
Manage ongoing content updates, page redesigns, and site architecture revisions across assigned College of Engineering web properties throughout each academic year.
Reorganize legacy page structures to make navigation intuitive for students, faculty, and visiting researchers searching for interdisciplinary grants and programs.
Integrated Accessibility & Code Refactoring:
Fix structural errors and maintain full WCAG 2.1 AA compliance across all active sites.
Correct color contrast ratios, establish clean heading hierarchies, fix broken navigation structures, and add keyboard-friendly focus states during routine site audits.
Integrated Accessibility & Code Refactoring:
Fix structural errors and maintain full WCAG 2.1 AA compliance across all active sites.
Correct color contrast ratios, establish clean heading hierarchies, fix broken navigation structures, and add keyboard-friendly focus states during routine site audits.
The Results
The Results
Over three years of managing 2–3 active College of Engineering websites per academic year, I established a reliable workflow that delivered fast weekly turnarounds while keeping all digital properties fully WCAG 2.1 AA compliant.
Ultimately, this experience proved that long-term web development requires balancing client support with scalable systems, ensuring sites stay secure, accessible, and aligned with evolving campus needs.
Over three years of managing 2–3 active College of Engineering websites per academic year, I established a reliable workflow that delivered fast weekly turnarounds while keeping all digital properties fully WCAG 2.1 AA compliant.
Ultimately, this experience proved that long-term web development requires balancing client support with scalable systems, ensuring sites stay secure, accessible, and aligned with evolving campus needs.
