While the university's new website was launched January 31 and departments and offices continue to contribute to it, one page in particular is receiving special attention.
“The web team is monitoring the traffic of the new site, and they've found one page in particular to be a standout,” said Robert Davies, vice president for University Relations. “They are finding in the traffic stats that people are truly using Inside IUP, which is great news—because that was our plan from the very beginning.”
Inside IUP, a link to which appears on the top of every page of the new web, features IUP news, calendars, and links to the tools students and employees need to conduct their daily business on campus. An added feature is that it displays the news of departments who use the news sections built into each of their individual websites.
“It's a very powerful tool—the ultimate in repurposing information,” Davies said. “It allows our departments and offices to post to their own websites news about upcoming events, special programs, and internal awards and recognition. Because it's a blog product, the news is fed up to Inside IUP, so, in effect, those who use the news section are self-posting to the Campus Bulletins webpage and making their information available to people who wouldn't necessarily visit the department page. Inside IUP provides students with a better snapshot of what is happening across campus, and it proves to our prospective students and parents that our campus is a busy place with plenty to offer.”
As the new web continues to grow, what might not be obvious to the campus community are two new developments that will be completed by the end of the spring semester.
IUP's athletics presence has moved to CSTV Online. CSTV—College Sports Television Network—hosts a wide variety of NCAA Division I and II websites, and moving the university's varsity sports presence there will accommodate additional needs unique to the athletics environment.
The alumni on-line community also will make a move from IAC, a service that has hosted the community for several years, to iModules, which recently purchased IAC. iModules and members of the University Relations Division are working together to provide an integrated look and feel to the community, so that alumni visitors will experience an increased comfort level while visiting.