A new website is in the works as part of Mercyhurst’s transition from a college to a university.

Currently, the website at www.mercyhurst.edu has the updated Mercyhurst University logo in the corner, but Web Coordinator and Content Manager Chris Norris says there is a lot more involved in the transition than that.

“The entire Mercyhurst community has changed identities,” said Norris. “We want the university website to reflect all of the changes we’ve seen over the course of the last year.

“The new website will feature a new look and will be completely rebuilt from the ground up. We’re moving to a new platform, a new content management system, a new look and a new feel,” Norris added.

A preview version of the new site has already been released to faculty and staff for feedback.

“Upon people’s feedback, we realized that we can’t just launch it tomorrow, because it needs a lot of work,” said Norris. “A majority of our feedback has been that the content is outdated.”

A major part of the development of the new site will involve talking to department heads and other staff members in order to make sure that all of the information is up-to-date.

“The main purpose of the site is to market Mercyhurst,” said Norris. “We want it to stand out to a 17- or 18-year-old kid who’s probably visited hundreds of college websites. We want ours to stick in their head.”

Part of achieving that goal for Norris involves having an up-to-date and accurate website.

The Erie-based web marketing company FH group has been at work building the new site for several months. The entire transition process has been going on for at least six months.
“There are thousands of pages, if it was as easy as clicking a button and making them all university that would be great,” said Norris. “Getting the content revised is a big process.”

Currently, there is no official launch date on the public version of the new Mercyhurst University site.