By Kennedy Thomas
Web Editor
California State University, Bakersfield’s Office of Public Affairs and Communications has recruited a new web communications manager to handle content management and technical problems reported regarding the new school website.
Stacey Childress, former web services coordinator for Texas Christian University, began work at CSUB on April 21. Although he is still being acquainted with the university’s websites and systems, Childress specified that he was aware of the priorities of his new position.
“What’s most important is that everything works,” Childress said.
Stacey Childress is CSUB’s new web communications manager. He said that he will work to ensure that visitors will be able to find what is important “within a few clicks.”
Childress’ last job, at TCU, involved participating in the planning stages of streamlining projects for two university websites. Now, dealing with a finished project, he will deal primarily with quality control issues.
Colleen Dillaway, CSUB’s director of public affairs and communications, selected Childress for the new position.
Dillaway said that Childress’ list of duties will include communicating with department web liaisons to ensure that content is updated and mistakes are corrected, and working with social media to communicate with the public.
In addition to proactively checking the CSUB website for errors and missing content, she specified that Childress will handle reports sent through the website’s site issues link, directing them to the appropriate departments.
Childress’ hiring comes after the majority of errors with the website have been resolved.
Dillaway said that since the recently refreshed website launched on Jan. 28, various website issues have been reported and fixed, including missing content, broken links, and typos. During the most egregious period of corrections, immediately after launch, Dillaway “saw maybe 100 emails” of site issue reports. According to Dillaway, “the week of broken links,” as she calls it, was inevitable, regardless of when the site launched.
“We knew that was going to happen, no matter when we launched it,” she said. “Even if we launched it three weeks from tomorrow, or three years from tomorrow, there would still be a week of broken links.”
The amount of reported site issues has decreased, but there are still instances of missing information.
As of April 21, Associated Students, Inc.’s weekly meeting agendas and minutes for the current spring quarter had not been uploaded to the website.
ASI Executive Vice President Derek Stotler said that the delay was due to recent “changes in staff,” but will be uploaded “within the next couple of weeks.”
Stotler pointed out that agendas and minutes are currently available upon request directly from the ASI office, with agendas posted 72 hours in advance. He said that minutes will be posted as soon as possible, once approved by the ASI board of directors.
Individual departments and organizations, such as ASI, are now responsible for their own sections of the website.
CSUB Information Technology Consultant Don David said that one of the changes that came about with the new website was a move to each department managing their own sections via their appointed web liaisons. He said that each department utilizes the “web content management system” to make changes.
David said that, with regard to the website, the IT department currently functions primarily as support for web liaisons who may need help in managing or updating their sections of the website.
“If you don’t know how to do x,y,z, we’ll at least provide you with training,” he said. “But the main responsibility is still up to you.”
