In an effort to accelerate the updating of university websites and implement a more agile Web development process, the Department of Marketing and Communications has reorganized some positions and responsibilities, and launched a new design of the Undergraduate Admission website the week of February 27.

The department’s new structure integrates more closely the talents of our design, marketing, and editorial teams while at the same time sharpening our focus on long-term Web strategies in the areas of search engine optimization, content and social media.

Janet Jaffke and Jon Kavanaugh now form the Web strategy team and are focused on defining and implementing data-driven strategies for usability, search engine optimization, information architecture, content and social media.  The Web development team of Peter Beltemacchi, Thalia Kapica and Patrick Villanueva will work to find and implement creative solutions to the challenges we face on the Web, incorporating current design and functionality practices to make our sites more flexible, appealing and easy to navigate.

The creative design team of Nancy Schoon, Scott Benbrook and Marty Schalm will work with the Web strategy team to redesign the look and feel of all IIT websites in the next year, making our sites more visually interesting and a better reflection the experience of studying and working at Illinois Institute of Technology.

The editorial team of Chelsea Kalberloh Jackson and Marcia Faye will also work with the Web strategy team to help refresh our Web content to make our website content more clear, understandable, and useful to prospective and current students, faculty, and staff.

The marketing team, in conjunction with editorial and creative design, is working to renew our marketing materials as well as all of IIT’s colleges and academic departments.  The marketing materials produced by these teams are incorporated into website design and content, insuring consistency in our messaging across all our communication vehicles.

Undergraduate Admission
The first shining example of the efforts of everyone in Marketing and Communications is the new IIT Undergraduate Admission website.  The site now has a new visual design consistent with new marketing materials for Undergraduate Admission, and the site’s navigation and content will be refreshed in the coming weeks.  M&C worked closely with our partners in Undergraduate Admission to update admission marketing materials and the website.  Thanks to everyone from Mike Gosz and Al Nunez’s team for their excellent work in making this all happen.

This is just the beginning of many exciting developments for IIT websites, and it will be followed by redesigns and revisions of all of our websites over the next several months.  We are currently working to find solutions to make the maintenance of websites easier on departmental Web administrators, streamline and eliminate duplicative work in updating Web content, integrate better mobile Web capability, and more.

Contact Senior Director of Communications Evan Venie at venie@iit.edu or 312.567.3202 with any questions about the new Undergraduate Admission website or IIT’s Web communications strategies.

IIT Communications and Marketing
Jeanne Hartig – Vice President of Communications and Marketing

Web Strategy Team
Janet Jaffke – Director of Content Strategy
Jon Kavanaugh – Director of Online Content

Web Development Team
Peter Beltemacchi – Web Programmer
Thalia Kapica – Web Programmer
Patrick Villanueva – Web Programmer

Creative Design Team
Nancy Schoon – Senior Creative Director
Scott Benbrook – Senior Graphics Designer
Marty Schalm –     Senior Graphics Designer

Marketing Team
Denise Moriarty – Director of Marketing
Jaime Banuelos – Associate Director of Marketing

Editorial Team
Chelsea Kalberloh Jackson – Director of Editorial Services
Marcia Faye – Associate Director of Commications and Marketing