Basic School Website Layout

When creating a school website, it is really important to make sure all the information that parents and students are seeking is easy to locate and the site is easy to navigate. 

The first thing to consider is what you want your school homepage to focus on. Is your primary goal to recruit prospective students? Or to keep current students and parents updated with news and activities? 

Over 90% of first impressions are design related. People tend to decide within seconds how they feel about your business based on the way your homepage looks. So the homepage should be well-designed and easy to navigate. 

Key Content for a School Website

Your website should answer the following questions:

• Who are you? 
• What do you do?
• What makes you unique?
• Where are you?
• How can I learn more?

I can't emphasize this enough. With the amazing current technology that we have available, I still come across schools that do not contain clearly some of the most important information people are seeking. All of these should be clearly located on the homepage. 

• School Location - Address, preferably with a google map embedded to allow the visitor to visually see where the school is located.
• School Contact information - Include phones, emails and address
• School Type - is it a public, charter, private (type of private school), all girls or boys school, higher education, etc.
• Grade Levels - Private and Public schools should have this clearly noted on the homepage. Saying "elementary" or "middle" is not sufficient as the grades may vary for those terms. 
• News - Schools typically have more activities and news to share than any other organization. Add a block with news and activities that allows visitors to click through for more details. 
• Mission Statement - This is important for school websites to show prospective parents and students the schools mission and values.
• Staff - Make it easy for parents, students and visitors to contact the correct person at the school by listing contact information for each pertinent personnel.
• Calendar - Don't forget to include the #1 item that parents and students visit their school website for! Include the year's calendar with start and end dates, days off, activities. 

Must Have Schools Website Design Elements

• Homepage that portrays the personality of your school
• Clear and Prominent Calls to Action
• Simple, not overly crowded design 
• Easy to navigate