We recently designed and developed a new site for North House Folk School located in Grand Marais, MN. North House offers classes that encourage and foster a love of learning. There are no exams, no credits, and no term papers. With classes such as timber framing, photography, wood fired baking, and blacksmithing, the students learn a particular skill, and it also encourages lifelong learning. This type of learning environment is inspired by Scandinavian folkehøjskolers(folk high schools).
From a user perspective, the new website is clean, easy to use, and does a beautiful job of representing North House's mission. It's easy to register for classes, and to see class dates and availability. The video on the front page adds an interesting dynamic to the site, but because it doesn't automatically start, the user is able to decide if and when to watch. The simplicity of the design lends itself to the feeling on campus, where regional artisans teach skills that have been practiced for centuries.
On the backend, the new website boasts a robust connection with a third party Client Management System from the class orders, making the process much more streamlined and simplified for the instructors as well as the students.
Additionally, from the site administrator perspective, we took a site that was built in multiple systems, and pulled it into a single system that the employees at North House can easily update with new classes, class descriptions, calendars, etc.
Finally, the site is mobile responsive (link to previous blog post re: mobile friendly), meaning it's easy to view on mobile devices and receives an SEO boost from Google.
We loved working on this site and are extremely proud of the result. Congratulations to our friends at North House! Stop by and check out the site for yourself - there just might be a class you want to take!
