UA Little Rock Successfully Launches Redesigned University Website
The University of Arkansas at Little Rock has completed a successful launch of its dynamically redesigned website, marking the culmination of a multi-year effort led by the Communications and Marketing Web Team.
The successful completion of the project marks a significant step forward for UA Little Rock, providing a more engaging, accessible, and user-friendly online experience that supports the university’s mission of student success and community engagement.
“This website is a vital resource for our students, faculty, staff, and the broader community,” Chancellor Christina S. Drale said. “The new design not only modernizes our digital presence but also ensures that users can easily find the information they need.”
The website redesign officially began in late 2021 with extensive research, including stakeholder interviews, surveys, focus groups, and user testing. These efforts ensured that every aspect of the new website—from content organization to visual design—was informed by data and best practices.
“When we started reviewing the content of the entire site, we had more than 8,000 published pages,” said Meaghan Milliorn, director of digital strategy. “In late 2024, that number was down to just over 5,000 pages, reducing the size of our website by more than 30%. We worked closely with departments to remove outdated content, consolidate pages, and rewrite information to be clearer, more accurate, and aligned with our brand.”
The extensive project, which involved content audits, structural improvements, a modernized design, and a transition to external hosting, represents a significant step forward in accessibility, usability, and brand consistency.
“A university’s website is often the first point of contact for prospective students and their families,” said Dr. Carrie Phillips, chief communications and marketing officer. “This redesign ensures that UA Little Rock puts its best foot forward, providing clear, engaging, and easily navigable content. Knowing people access websites from a variety of places, we worked to ensure seamless navigation across any device.”
One of the most significant enhancements was the reorganization of the website’s structure. Testing played a crucial role in determining a format that would best serve constituents. The new design includes interactive elements, a universal footer with key links, and top landing pages tailored to different audiences.
“Our goal was to make information easy to find and accessible for all users,” Milliorn said. “We wanted a site that wasn’t just visually appealing but truly functional and focused on students.”
The website’s updated design aligns with UA Little Rock’s overall branding and national best practices. It is mobile-friendly, fully responsive, and meets modern accessibility standards. For the first time, the university’s digital and print materials share consistent fonts, colors, and design elements, creating a cohesive visual identity.
The move to cloud hosting ensures greater reliability, multiple backups, and improved site performance, particularly in emergency situations. “Cloud hosting is a national best practice that enhances site security and uptime,” Milliorn said.
The project required collaboration across campus, with faculty, staff, and students providing input through multiple focus groups and testing phases. Monthly updates since May 2022 kept the campus community informed about the progress and provided multiple opportunities for feedback.
“I am really grateful for the support given to us by Chancellor Drale,” Milliorn said. “She understood from the beginning how vital an updated website is for prospective and current students, and her support made this project possible.”
The project’s success was due in large part to the efforts of the Web Team, including developers Adam Spelbring and Robbie Hunt and Bobbie Handcock, web content specialist.
“Bobbie Handcock has been extremely instrumental in reviewing and writing web content for hundreds of sites,” Milliorn said. “I am especially proud of the fact that all the development was done in-house by our two developers, Adam Spelbring and Robbie Hunt. They understood how important it was to build an accessible, modern, and responsive site. They both greatly increased their knowledge and skill level to build this site, and none of this would have been possible without them.”
With its sleek new design, improved structure, and enhanced functionality, UA Little Rock’s website now stands as a dynamic and effective resource for students, faculty, staff, and the broader community. Check out the new website at ualr.edu from any device!