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School’s New Website Provides Users With Robust Search Capability
Riley, Kansas (September 10, 2008) Riley County USD 378 has always been known for both academic and athletic excellence. After recently launching their new website, www.usd378.org, they can now be recognized for their dedication to providing parents, students and faculty with an exceptional online resource for school information.

“We decided to redesign because we needed a website that made it easier for our site visitors to find information without having to spend a lot of time searching,” said Brad Starnes, District Superintendent.

The new website has succeeded in making it easier for site visitors to find information by featuring an intuitive navigation structure that quickly directs users to the information they need. However, if the user still can’t find what they are looking for, the site’s search feature is sure to direct them where they need to be.

“The site’s search feature is one of the best aspects of the website,” added Starnes. “It searches through every document on the site including our policies, agendas, minutes, and of course, web pages.”

Working with the Kansas-based website management company ePoweredSchools, the school district has implemented a web content management system that helps district staff efficiently maintain the new website.

“With the ePoweredSchools system staff members throughout the district are able to maintain the site,” noted Starnes. “Now we don’t have to have a fulltime, dedicated webmaster and our IT department can focus their attention on other projects.”

Delegating website maintenance throughout the district means the site is always featuring the most up-to-date news and information possible. This change has already provided the school district with positive feedback from the community faculty alike.

“It’s great to hear that our site users appreciate what we have done,” said Starnes. “We have received feedback commenting on how useful the new document center is and the site’s ease of navigation.”

Parents and students aren’t the only ones benefiting from the new website. District staff can now access and submit numerous forms online, ranging from expense reports to overtime requests.

“District employees really like being able to access these forms from anywhere and at anytime,” said Starnes. “After they submit the form we can track it online, which is helping to reduce the amount of paper the district uses.”

Riley County USD’s commitment to their students, parents and faculty was made abundantly clear throughout the website redesign project. The school district has made every effort to develop an effective online resource and has succeeded in providing a textbook example of what a school district website should be.

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To learn how you can provide your students, parents and faculty with a robust website and search function, request your free 30-minute online demonstration today!