How do you declare the value of your school? You start with your best assets: Your students. When you visit the MCA page the first thing you see is a header image of some happy students with the school’s motto in bold letters. The blue and white color scheme is sharp, and as visually inviting as a frame around those happy faces. The messaging on the home page relates to the concept of “reaching young hearts,” reinforcing that mix of faith and education that the school hopes to capture.
The main navigation menu is broken down into options for current families, future families, and alumni, making it simple to find the direction you need to head in to find the information you need. To further streamline navigation, a development tool called “mega menus” was utilized to expand each menu option and give additional options to select so the search can be more specific. When a user hovers over a menu option, a call-out expands giving additional choices for navigation to sub pages.
The Home Page has some great call-outs that help with navigation on the site, making commonly visited pages, like the Admissions page, accessible with just one click. These are areas generally targeted by prospective families that are thinking about coming to the school, so they are displayed prominently on the page.
Another section showcases stats about the school, including the low 16:1 student/teacher ratio and the 125 average service hours completed by the average graduate. The Home Page is completed with a calendar of coming events, so both new and potential students and families can be involved. Links to all social media platforms appear in both the header and the footer as well as a click-to-call and a click-to-email button.
The Admissions page makes it easy to schedule a visit, and it also makes it simple to apply as well as find out if you qualify for financial aid and tuition assistance. Everything is handled right on the site and all of the information is delivered to the staff electronically, making processing easy for the team at the academy. Existing families benefit from technology as well, as a third-party plug-in enables them to pay their tuition right online for instant confirmation.
The site is inviting for prospective families while remaining useful to the families that attend currently. It is an enhanced, functional, and interactive brochure that can be used as a portal into the life of the school and the children that attend. The site was designed to be easily updated so new content can always be added, and that means that the site will serve the Medina Christian Academy for years to come!
