In 2006, we started working on a redesign of the Kansas East website. The site as it existed at the time was built on a very limited content management system and the site’s organizational structure was not adequate to deal with the amount of information they were wanting to put on the site.
We started working with Brick River Technologies on a new design and prepared to move the East Conference site to the same platform as the West Conference site. We intentionally chose to use images of people in the headers on the website as much as possible and to use a diversity of people in terms of ethnicity and age.
I worked to establish a new organizational structure in consultation with the conference leaders and worked with my staff to develop content for the pages.
After a six-month development process, we launched the site in January 2007. The site was recognized by the United Methodist Association of Communicators with an Award of Excellence in design in the fall.
In 2010, the developers at Brick River updated their management console, which required us to do a redesign of the website. The new design focused less on strong header images and afforded us the opportunity to put large photos and videos embedded in the site’s homepage. We streamlined site organization at the same time, again based on user comments and tried to bring the site structure more in line with the site structure of its sister website for the Kansas West Conference. Since many pastors are appointed back and forth between the conferences, it makes sense to organize the sites similarly to reduce user frustration.
In fall 2011, another small reorganization was done to reflect an emphasis on Vital Congregations and Leadership Development, which have become strong emphases for the two conferences.
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