ASU's School of Human Evolution and Social Science

How I Simplified 30+ Academic Pages for ASU's

Information Architecture

Internal Tool

Data Visualization

Project Details

ROLE:         Product Designer/Web Developer
Tools:     Figma, Figjam
Team:       Megan Martin, Marketing Manager
                      Nicole Adams, Content Cordinator
client:    SHESC - ASU
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5 second takeaway

Problem

ASU's School of Human Evolution and Social Science website had fragmented into 200+ disconnected pages after a Drupal migration, creating a frustrating navigation experience.

Solution

As the sole designer-developer, I conducted stakeholder interviews and redesigned 30+ key pages using creative block-based solutions within Drupal's constraints.

Impact

Analytic tools showed significant improvements in site engagement, with reduced bounce rates and increased content discovery across academic resources.

Impact

Measuring Human Impact

The human stories were more compelling. 'A professor reported that for the first time, students were actually finding and reading his published papers through the departmental website.'

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% reduction in bounce rates on key academic pages

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% increase in page depth per session as users discovered related content

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Positive feedback from both marketing team and faculty

introduction

A Fragmented Digital Experience

The School of Human Evolution and Social Science (SHESC) at ASU houses world-class research and education in anthropology and social sciences. Following a migration to Drupal CMS, the site fragmented into a digital maze of disconnected content.

Academic content was scattered across 200+ URLs with no clear navigation path, creating a frustrating experience for students, faculty, and researchers.

PROBLEM BREAKDOWN

Why was the revamping needed ?

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Website Audit: Cataloged 600+ links across the site architecture

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Technical Analysis: Identified 250+ broken links and navigation dead-ends

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Analytics Review: Used Google Analytics 4 to identify high-traffic pages and drop-off rates

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User Insights

Understanding the Users

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Students seeking clear, direct information about courses and programs

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Faculty needing comprehensive academic resources and publication platforms

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Researchers requiring detailed information on ongoing projects and collaborations

Pain Points

The friction points

Through this project, I discovered how minor design tweaks – like reducing clicks or surfacing key information – could give Case Managers more time with the children who needed them most.

Information Architecture Issue:

Content organization reflected internal department structure rather than user needs

Navigation Problem:

Critical resources buried 4-5 clicks deep in illogical pathways

Visual Design Flaw:

Lack of hierarchy made dense academic content overwhelming

Technical Constraint:

Limited ability to customize Drupal's component library

User Insights

Stakeholder balancing

Instead of seeking middle ground, I identified shared values across stakeholders and built solutions that served multiple needs simultaneously.

Problem and Evidence

60% Bounce Rates

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Frustration with Users

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SEO Performance Affected

How might we make complex academic content more discovable and useful while working within technical constraints of the Drupal CMS?

APPROACH

Rebuilding the Foundation

I approached this challenge by creating card sorting exercises with students and faculty. The breakthrough came when we shifted from department-centered organization to task-centered pathways.

"We don't need to show them our organizational chart," I explained to stakeholders. "We need to answer their questions."

APPROACH

Early design breakthrough

Block-Based Innovation: Repurposed existing Drupal blocks in creative combinations

Strategic Visual Design: Used visual design to create the illusion of custom components

Content Pattern Library: Developed reusable patterns that marketing could implement consistently

SOlution

A lot of elements

Rather than treating this as 30+ isolated pages, I approached the redesign as an integrated academic ecosystem. Working simultaneously as designer and developer, I built the solution around three reinforcing principles:

1. Visual Hierarchy

Transformed dense academic content into intuitive pathways. Repurposed existing Drupal blocks in creative combinations

2. Aesthetic Usability

Reduced cognitive load through consistent design patterns.  Used visual design to create the illusion of custom components

3. Content  

Aligned content with both cognitive needs and search requirements. Developed reusable patterns that marketing could implement consistently

learning and reflections

Leadership as Enablers:

Strong leadership support allowed systemic changes instead of surface fixes.

Constraints as Catalysts:

Design constraints don't limit possibilities—they focus innovation.

Balance as Strategy:

The true challenge was balancing competing stakeholder needs while maintaining business objectives.

A Dual Role:

Strengthened my ability to work simultaneously as designer and developer.