UW Launches Redesigned Website to Enhance User Experience, Showcase State’s University

The University of Wyoming has launched a redesigned website, providing students, faculty, staff, prospective students, alumni and the broader public with a more modern, user-friendly and visually engaging digital experience.

 

The redesigned site, launched Monday, marks the culmination of a comprehensive, multiyear effort aimed at improving navigation, accessibility, mobile performance and alignment with UW’s brand and strategic goals. It can be viewed at www.uwyo.edu.

 

“We’re excited to unveil a cleaner, more intuitive website that better reflects the excellence of the University of Wyoming and the people we serve,” says Chad Baldwin, UW’s associate vice president for marketing and communications. “This redesign strengthens our ability to connect with future students, share our research and teaching mission, and address the needs of Wyoming communities.”

 

Key improvements to the site include:

 

-- Improved navigation: The new structure allows users to find key information more quickly and easily, with simplified menus and streamlined page layouts.

 

-- Accessibility enhancements: The redesign aligns with federal Americans with Disabilities Act standards, improving usability for individuals with disabilities.

 

-- Fresh visual design: The updated look and feel showcase UW’s identity and landscapes, using bold imagery, enhanced typography and an updated color palette still emphasizing the university’s traditional brown and gold.

 

-- Audience-focused content: The site features distinct entry points for major user groups -- including prospective students, current students, faculty/staff and alumni -- to more directly connect them to relevant resources.

 

The project was led by UW’s Institutional Marketing website support team -- headed by Mindy Peep, associate director of digital and content strategy -- in collaboration with UW Information Technology and hundreds of website editors in departments across campus.

 

Working with the university’s website vendor, Modern Campus, Peep and team developed multiple template designs, customized training and extensive communications to help units improve their digital presence. Additionally, the team rebuilt hundreds of pages that receive the most traffic, including those for the more than 200 individual academic programs at UW. The new design also includes an optimized program finder and cost of attendance calculator to help prospective students obtain information.

 

“This is more than a visual refresh,” says Michelle Eberle, UW’s director of brand and marketing. “It’s a strategic upgrade that positions UW to compete more effectively in digital spaces, improves service to our campus community and better tells the story of Wyoming’s university.”

 

In recognition of her leadership and vision, Peep has been invited to speak at Modern Campus’s conference in Chicago, along with the company’s Design Studio team, about preparing for a website redesign. The intent is to help others in higher education prepare for this type of massive undertaking.

 

In the coming weeks, the university will continue refining content and adding new features based on user feedback. The redesign also includes a new content management system implementation to streamline updates and empower units of UW to maintain their own content more effectively.

 

About the University of Wyoming

 

The University of Wyoming is the state’s only four-year public university, offering more than 200 areas of study and serving as a hub for research, innovation and outreach. Founded in 1886, UW combines world-class education with the personal attention and accessibility of a land-grant institution.