The Office of Web & Digital Strategy advanced several strategic initiatives across uis.edu and the UIS Mobile App during FY26. These efforts strengthened accessibility, usability, transparency, content quality, and information discovery for both visitors and campus editors. The team completed approximately 122 tasks and project requests and trained 125 employees. View the FY26 website statistics for additional performance data.
Accessibility and Compliance
The web team partnered with the University of Illinois System to pilot and implement Siteimprove, an accessibility platform available to UIS employees and student workers. The tool enables site owners to scan their webpages, identify accessibility issues, and follow guided remediation steps. During FY26, the team remediated 6,854 webpages and improved page-content accessibility from 61% in October 2025 to 100% by the April 2026 compliance deadline. Accessibility remains an ongoing operational priority as content is continually added and updated.
Content Reduction and Governance
Because the Siteimprove license is based on total page count, the web team conducted a comprehensive content audit to remove outdated, duplicate, and low-value content. This effort reduced the website from approximately 16,000 pages to 8,000 pages, improving content quality, governance, accessibility, and platform efficiency.
Website Archive
The team established a website archiving strategy to support content retention, accessibility, and long-term site maintenance. Under the proposed framework, official UIS news older than five years, departmental news older than four years, and events older than one year will move to a separate archive site. This approach will preserve institutional records while keeping the primary website current and manageable.
File Upload Standards
The team restricted website uploads to PDF files because other document formats cannot be scanned automatically by the university’s accessibility tools. This change reduces compliance risk and prevents new inaccessible document formats from being added to the site.
PDF Remediation
The web team completed a focused two-month PDF remediation initiative to assist departments with high-priority accessibility needs and accelerate progress toward federal compliance requirements.
Artificial Intelligence Initiatives
The Office of Web & Digital Strategy implemented several AI-supported tools to improve information discovery, accessibility, and the overall website experience. These initiatives include UIS AI Chat, AI-enhanced website search, and automatic alt-text generation.
UIS AI Chat
The team launched UIS AI Chat across uis.edu. The tool uses official UIS website content and frequently asked questions to provide timely guidance on admissions, tuition and financial aid, academic programs, campus services, events, and other university topics. It also supports employees by making institutional information easier to locate.
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AI-Enhanced Website Search
The Office of Web & Digital Strategy enhanced the uis.edu search experience with artificial intelligence to deliver more relevant, accurate, and useful results for visitors and employees.
The search interface was also redesigned for greater visibility and improved usability across desktop and mobile devices, including easier access and a more effective typing experience on smaller screens.
AI-Generated Alt Text
A new media-library feature automatically generates draft alt text when images are uploaded. This reduces the time required for editors to create accessible image descriptions while supporting more consistent accessibility practices.
Generative Engine Optimization
The Office of Web & Digital Strategy launched a Generative Engine Optimization initiative to evaluate how UIS is represented across ChatGPT, Gemini, Grok, Perplexity, and Claude. Using a standardized prompt framework, the team assessed responses to questions about academic programs and the university, identified content gaps and unclear information, and developed recommendations for Marketing, Media Strategy, and the web team. Completed and ongoing improvements include enhancements to tuition, career outcomes, program content, FAQs, admissions information, competitor comparisons, and institutional value messaging. This work is designed to improve the accuracy, visibility, and competitiveness of UIS information in AI-powered search and discovery.
Custom Module Development
The web team developed several custom Drupal modules during FY26 to improve accessibility, content governance, personalization, and social media integration.
- UIS Document Blocker: Prevents links to unsupported document formats and limits file access to PDFs that can be scanned through the university’s accessibility tools.
- UIS File Usage: Provides more accurate file-usage reporting than Drupal’s default functionality, including files and images added through direct links or custom code. This supports more effective content cleanup and storage management.
- UIS Smart Form: Powers the personalized experience on the Next landing page by collecting user selections and displaying content tailored to their interests and needs.
- Instagram Feed Block: Enables departments to display Instagram content by account, date, or hashtag. The module supports both global and block-level account settings and was contributed to Drupal.org for public use.
- Eduframe Project: The ION department implemented a new learning management system (LMS) and needed a streamlined way to manage course and program content across platforms. The Web Team developed a custom process and content type that automatically imports course and program information from the Eduframe website into uis.edu. This integration eliminated manual data entry, ensured content remained synchronized between systems, and improved the efficiency and accuracy of website updates.
Interactive 3D Campus Map
The team launched a new interactive 3D campus map to replace static paper maps and improve campus wayfinding. Users can search for buildings, services, and destinations by name or description and access directions through an interactive interface.
Powered by Google mapping technology, the map provides a detailed three-dimensional view of campus and helps students, employees, and visitors navigate UIS more confidently.
Personalized Next Landing Page
In collaboration with Marketing, the web team developed Next, a personalized landing page that adjusts content based on a visitor’s interests and self-identified needs. The experience is designed to improve relevance, support prospective students through the enrollment journey, and increase conversion opportunities.
Quick Links Redesign
The team replaced the previous quick-links menu with dedicated Quick Links pages to improve accessibility, navigation, and content accuracy. Since launching in March 2026, the new pages have generated approximately 51,000 pageviews.
Academic Program Page Enhancements
Working with Admissions, the Registrar, and Marketing, the web team continued to improve UIS academic program pages. Enhancements included stronger information architecture, expanded schema markup, clearer tuition and career information, and anchor navigation to help users reach key content more efficiently.
Program Page Performance
- 4,994 application clicks, a 78% increase
- 237,567 pageviews, a 1% increase
- 148,646 users, a 65% increase
Campus Communication Improvements
The web team created a centralized campus communication request form to route submissions to the appropriate channel. Employees can submit campus announcements, Canvas messages, mobile app notifications, news, and events through one coordinated process.
A supporting dashboard and approval workflow allow the Marketing team to review, approve, and publish requests across uis.edu, the UIS Mobile App, and myUIconnection. The process reduces email-based coordination and creates a more efficient, consistent approach to campus communications.
UIS Mobile App Enhancements
The UIS Mobile App is continually reviewed and updated to improve accessibility, usability, and engagement.
Accessibility Improvements
The team implemented accessibility updates throughout the mobile app to support compliance with federal digital accessibility requirements.
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Custom Notification Settings
Users can now customize their notification preferences and choose which types of messages they receive through the app.
UIS Sticker Pack
Android users can now access and share UIS-branded stickers through the app. UIS stickers also remain available to iOS users through iMessage.
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Custom Gutenberg Blocks
Building on the custom card blocks introduced in the previous year, the web team added new reusable content components based on editor feedback.
Accordion Block
The accordion block allows editors to organize expandable content directly within the Gutenberg editor. Editors can place a variety of content blocks inside each accordion and reposition them as needed.
Accordion Title 1
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Accordion content can include text, images, and other supported Gutenberg blocks.
Accordion Title 2
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Additional accordion sections can be added and arranged as needed.
Featured Profile Block
The Featured Profile block allows units to highlight alumni, students, faculty, and other members of the UIS community.
Profile Scroller
The Profile Scroller provides a flexible way to display multiple profiles in an interactive format.
Web Advisory Council (WAC)
To strengthen campus collaboration and digital governance, the Office of Web & Digital Strategy launched the Web Advisory Council (WAC). The council serves as a cross-functional advisory group that aligns web strategy with institutional priorities, reviews major digital initiatives, develops standards and best practices, and provides a forum for campus stakeholders to influence the future direction of the UIS website and digital services.
New Digital Tools
Siteimprove
UIS piloted and implemented Siteimprove to support accessibility, quality assurance, and search optimization. Following a successful pilot, the web team partnered with the University of Illinois System on a shared contract that reduced costs and expanded available features. The platform identifies accessibility issues in webpages and PDFs, provides remediation guidance, and offers SEO and quality-assurance insights.
Microsoft Clarity
The web team uses Microsoft Clarity to evaluate user behavior and identify usability issues across uis.edu. Heatmaps and session recordings provide insight into navigation patterns, interaction challenges, and potential barriers, enabling the team to make evidence-based improvements.
PageSense A/B Testing
The team implemented PageSense to test page layouts, content, calls to action, and design elements. The platform supports data-informed decisions intended to improve website performance and conversion rates.
Web Infrastructure Investment
The web team purchased two new servers from ITS to support the 3D campus map, website archive, AI-powered search, and UIS AI Chat. One server hosts the applications, while the second supports database storage. UIS website content is indexed in an external database to power both AI search and the chatbot.
Website Statistics
View detailed information about website performance, top-performing pages, academic program traffic, search behavior, and other key metrics.
