CMC Office of Public Affairs Announces Website Redesign

Claremont McKenna College's website has been redesigned and updated for the second time in two years. Max Benavidez, Associate Vice President for Public Affairs and Communications, announced the changes in an email to the student body earlier this evening. The redesign is largely aesthetic, though the email noted that "content management for the main CMC website will now be housed in Public Affairs," meaning that all offices and departments must update their sites through the office of Public Affairs.

In response to the announcement, ASCMC President Aditya Pai '13 said, "I like the new website so far but would have preferred for more student input to be incorporated into the process. I look forward to working with the Office of Public Affairs to help facilitate student input in future iterations." Andrew Chung '16 was more critical, saying, "Regardless of the aesthetics of the new website, I would have very much liked it if students had much more of a say on what went on the new website."

According to Public Affairs, the site represents a move towards responsive web design, which changes the parameters of the site based on the accessing device. “We want to be part of the growing mobility trend in higher education,” said Benavidez. “Responsive web design adjusts for screen size in a multi-device world.” The tabs, gateways, and scrolling menus also change, depending on whether the viewer is on a smartphone or tablet.

A feature on the new site is a drop-down menu where prospective students can select their academic interests. It then customizes the links and descriptions they see in the different sections. According to Benavidez, the feature is common amongst higher education websites. Additionally, the gateway tab has split into standing links at the top of the screen, and the grey row of drop-down menu tabs has become six expanding tabs on a white background. Aesthetically, the current maroon and grey theme has expanded to include more colors and now is featured on the home page on a series of rectangular tiles, reminiscent of the new Windows 8 design. The redesigned website went live at 9:00 PM PST on December 11.

Christian Neumeister '15 contributed reporting to this article.