Education - Web Design
A school website that looks great but doesn't convert prospective families into inquiries, tour bookings, and applications isn't doing its job. We design WordPress websites for private schools, charter schools, preschools, colleges, and online learning programs with the enrollment funnel at the center of every decision.
Overview
Seven things every school site needs. We build all of them in from day one.
Every page a prospective parent or student lands on should have a logical next step: request information, schedule a tour, register for an open house, or start an application. We structure navigation, calls to action, and page hierarchy around that journey.
The DOJ updated ADA Title II requirements to mandate WCAG 2.1 Level AA compliance for school websites. We build accessibility in from the beginning: semantic markup, keyboard navigation, color contrast, accessible forms, and screen-reader-compatible structure. It's designed in, not retrofitted.
Over 60% of school website traffic arrives on a mobile device. Parents check admissions deadlines, event dates, and directory listings from their phones. Every page is built for that context first.
Prospective families and current community members need different paths through the same site. We architect navigation and page structures that serve both audiences without creating confusion or competing calls to action.
Open house events are among the highest-converting admissions touchpoints. We build event pages, registration forms, and confirmation workflows that capture family data and feed it into your CRM and email marketing tools.
We build faculty directories using WordPress custom post types so non-technical staff can update bios, photos, and credentials without touching code or calling a developer.
Urban schools, international programs, and communities with non-English-speaking families need multilingual sites. We implement WPML or TranslatePress for full site translation and embed Wordly for live interpretation during virtual events.
Process
Five stages from kickoff to launch. Every one built around how prospective families actually move through the admissions journey.
We start by understanding your school's enrollment goals, target families, current inquiry and application volume, and the specific admissions path you want a prospective family to take. This shapes every structural decision before a single page is designed.
We map out the full site structure, define primary and secondary navigation paths for each audience, and build an accessibility plan that addresses WCAG 2.1 AA requirements specific to your content types: forms, directories, calendars, media galleries, and document downloads.
We design pages that balance your school's brand identity with conversion performance. Student life imagery, campus video, and program-specific content are organized to give prospective families a clear sense of community while moving them toward an action. Your team reviews and approves before we build.
We build in WordPress and configure integrations with your admissions and communication platforms: Ravenna, Blackbaud, SchoolAdmin, FACTS, Veracross, Mailchimp, Constant Contact, Eventbrite, Vimeo, and Stripe for application fees. Each integration is tested end-to-end before launch.
Every project closes with our 75+ point quality audit. For school sites, this includes a dedicated WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility pass: form label associations, focus states, skip navigation, alt text on all media, heading hierarchy, and color contrast ratios. Nothing ships without it.
The admissions and communication tools your school likely already runs on. We connect your site to them instead of asking you to switch.
Admissions & enrollment
Ravenna, Blackbaud, SchoolAdmin, FACTS, Veracross. Inquiry form submissions and event registrations flow directly into your admissions workflow, so family data doesn't get re-typed or lost.
Forms & intake
WPForms, Gravity Forms. WCAG-compliant inquiry forms, application intake, and event registration with conditional logic and CRM integrations.
Events & communication
Eventbrite, Zoom, Mailchimp, Constant Contact. Campus event registration, virtual open house embedding, and email nurture sequences for admissions follow-up.
Media
Vimeo. Privacy-friendly campus life video and virtual tour embedding, with better performance and privacy controls than a standard YouTube embed for school content.
Translation
WPML, TranslatePress, Wordly. Full-site translation for parent communities and live interpretation for virtual open house events.
Online learning & payments
LearnDash, LifterLMS, Stripe. Structured course delivery, student progress tracking, quizzes, certificates, and application fee or program payment collection.
Pricing
Every project's scoped after a free strategy call. These are real ranges from the school sites we've built, not minimums designed to get you in the door.
Foundational
$2,000-$5,000
One-time build
Full enrollment-focused
$5,000-$8,000
One-time build
Complex build
$8,000-$12,000
Scoped individually
Most school website projects fall in the $2,000-$12,000 range. That covers a well-structured WordPress site with your core admissions pages, mobile-optimized design, WCAG 2.1 AA compliance, one or two platform integrations, a faculty directory, an events calendar, and a CMS your staff can manage without developer help. We give you a clear number after a free discovery conversation, not before.
Send us your project and we'll scope it straight -- no pushy sales.
Sub-verticals
Different school types need different admissions structures. We build for the full spectrum.
Tuition transparency, financial aid information, and a clear application timeline are the pages prospective families look for first. We structure these so they're easy to find and easy to act on.
Lottery enrollment windows, district boundary information, and public meeting notices need their own clear structure alongside standard admissions content. We build navigation that keeps both audiences oriented.
Program pages, credit transfer information, and application portal links need to work for a more independent, self-directed visitor than a K-12 parent audience. We adjust tone, depth, and navigation accordingly.
These sites live or die on the strength of their course catalog presentation and enrollment flow. We integrate LearnDash or LifterLMS directly into the site architecture so browsing, enrolling, and paying happen without friction.
Deeper reads pulled from our blog, all written with education in mind.
Good to know
Most school website projects fall in the $2,000-$12,000 range. That includes a complete WordPress build with your core admissions pages, WCAG 2.1 AA compliance, mobile-optimized design, accessible inquiry forms, and a faculty directory system your staff can manage. More complex builds with custom LMS integration, multilingual architecture, or deep CRM connections are scoped individually. We give you a clear number after a free discovery conversation, not before.
Yes. We handle migrations from Finalsite, eCampus, SchoolDude, and other proprietary or open-source platforms. The migration process includes content transfer, URL structure and redirect mapping to protect your existing search visibility, and integration reconfiguration for your admissions and communication tools. We scope migrations carefully because the details matter, but it's a process we've run many times.
Most school website projects take 10-16 weeks from kickoff to launch. Complex builds with custom integrations, multilingual content, or LMS components may run longer. We give you a project timeline during scoping so you can plan around admissions season, open house dates, and enrollment deadlines.
Yes. That dual-audience problem is one of the first things we address in discovery. We design clear navigation paths and page structures for each audience, so prospective families find admissions information and current families find portals, calendars, and directories without either group getting lost in the other's content.
Accessibility is built into the design, not added after the fact. We plan for semantic HTML structure, accessible form labels and error messaging, keyboard-navigable menus, appropriate color contrast, alt text on all images, and heading hierarchy from the architecture stage. Before launch, every site goes through a dedicated WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility audit as part of our 75+ point QA process. Schools on our maintenance plans receive ongoing accessibility monitoring as content is updated.
Still have questions? We're happy to answer them, let's connect.
Tell us about your project and we'll take a look. No pushy sales, no wasted calls.