The UNCF is a non-profit that works to create a future where all Americans have equal access to a college education, specifically focusing on empowering Black students through HBCUs.

Each year, the UNCF’s network of 37 member HBCUs graduate more than 60,000 students. With the COVID-19 pandemic and the move to remote learning, HBCUs found themselves lagging behind—only 20% of HBCUs offer online degrees compared to 54% of other higher ed institutions.

HBCUv (V for virtual) is a custom online learning platform that draws from the rich community and legacies of HBCUs, providing a space for students to thrive. The initial version of HBCUv was designed and developed with 9 partner institutions and is scheduled to launch in the fall of 2024.

Expertise

• Team leadership

• UX design

• User testing

• Client management and design evangelism

Project Details

• Role: UX Lead and Manager

• Client: United Negro College Fund (UNCF)

• Timeframe: 4 months

Key Collaborators

• Juan Lozano

• Annie Ashley

Challenge

How might we validate assumptions with student voices?

I joined the project during the design phase, after the strategy team had already conducted a thorough ethnographic research study and created initial drafts of the core feature set for launch. My main objective as the UX lead was to validate, refine, and see the design work through the development cycle, while working around logistical challenges and a tight timeline.

A main challenge I worked through was how to bring more clarity for the community features. The UX team had done an excellent job exploring many directions we could go in, but we needed more user input to decide which directions to move forward with.

Approach

Meeting students where they were

My typical approach of conducting remote usability tests turned out to be difficult due to the timing—students were completing their finals and going on break. Our online screener surveys for participants were not performing well, though the few remote testing sessions we conducted were still immensely helpful.

To try things face-to-face where it might be easier to reach students, a UX researcher and I piggy-backed off two campus visits with another team conducting feedback sessions with partner institutions. We set up one-on-one meetings and whiteboard sessions with students to get the input we were looking for.

The conversations with students provided us with valuable insights including:

• The personal profile, a high priority community feature, was received less enthusiastically than anticipated by students who saw it as “yet another profile to fill out”

• Overall reactions to the value proposition, brand, and design were positive

• Many students had questions that were adjacent to the value proposition of the platform, such as internet bandwidth requirements, financial aid, and enrollment eligibility for the online courses

Design

Bold, beautiful, and clear

The core features were designed put the rich and vibrant communities of HBCUs front and center, while being easy and straightforward to navigate.

Outcome

A happy client, and one step closer to launch

To wrap up this phase of work, the team created an interactive Figma prototype that summarized the entire project and linked all the design files and resources in one place which we called the “Experience Vision Index”. This was very positively received by the client, and we are all excited for the launch of HBCUv coming in Fall 2024.

Reflection

Flexibility and creativity is key, especially when working with tight constraints

Over the years, I've learned that having a plan is crucial, but it's equally essential to be adaptable when unexpected issues arise, without losing focus on the bigger picture.

While the way we conducted usability testing wasn’t my ideal approach, we were able to find an alternate way to gather feedback that had the added bonus of visiting two incredible HBCU communities and their students, faculty, and staff!