North Carolina Public High School Websites: A Content Analysis And Digital Toolkit

High school websites are essential communication tools, yet significant inconsistencies exist in their design, accessibility, and functionality. This study analyzed the websites of 100 public high schools in North Carolina, revealing common content trends and priorities but also navigation inconsistencies, low accessibility scores (averaging 54.2%), and poor mobile performance (averaging 43.5%). While 98% of sites were mobile-compatible, the study revealed a need for guidelines to help schools improve key accessibility issues, navigation, standardized content organization, and mobile design. To address these issues, this project applies user-centered design (UCD), user experience (UX), and user interface (UI) principles to develop a digital toolkit to help schools improve navigation, accessibility, and overall user experience. This resource aims to equip schools with practical strategies to create more inclusive, user-friendly websites, regardless of their available resources or technical expertise.