Kenya School Website Accessibility

Role: UX Designer | Researcher | Web Developer

As part of an independent study at Western Michigan University’s COMBOT Lab (Communication and Social Robotics), I collaborated with Dr. Chad Edwards to design and launch a website for a secondary school in Kenya. The project aimed to expand access to digital communication and educational resources for a community with limited internet infrastructure and diverse technology skills.

Working closely with local teachers and students, I developed a lightweight, mobile-first website that prioritized accessibility, clarity, and cultural context. Through iterative A/B testing and compensated feedback sessions, the design evolved to support intuitive navigation, simplified content structure, and consistent readability—ensuring users could easily engage regardless of device or connection quality.

Homepage – Building a Welcoming Digital Identity

This image captures the homepage of the Nairobi School website, designed to serve as a welcoming and accessible digital hub for students, faculty, and the local community. The clean layout, structured navigation, and high-contrast typography were implemented to ensure clarity and usability for users of all experience levels. Developed as part of my independent study at COMBOT Lab, this project reflects a human-centered approach to improving digital access in educational environments with limited technological infrastructure.

Facilities Page – Accessible Information Design

This section of the Nairobi School website highlights the institution’s core facilities and student resources through a clean, visually balanced layout. I designed the page to pair high-contrast text with meaningful icons, ensuring clarity and accessibility for users with varying visual abilities or internet quality. The structured hierarchy and contrasting background colors help key information, such as performance, support systems, and library access—stand out while maintaining a modern, mobile-responsive design.

Navigation & Footer –
Clear Structure for All Users

The footer redesign focused on improving navigation, organization, and accessibility for users with different technical skills and devices. I simplified the structure into four clear columns—Intro, Quick Links, Support, and Contact, making information easy to find even with limited bandwidth. Icons, color contrast, and responsive spacing were refined to enhance readability and ensure compatibility with screen readers, improving access for both local and international visitors.

Academics Page – Readability and Data Accessibility

The Academics page was designed to make key school information clear and easy to digest for parents, students, and faculty. I restructured the layout to emphasize hierarchy and alignment, using increased line spacing, accessible color contrast, and improved typography for better readability. The school performance table was formatted with responsive design principles to remain legible on all devices, ensuring inclusive access to academic data even with low bandwidth or mobile viewing.

Design Goals

Accessibility Across Devices: Optimized for low internet speeds and older devices.
Readability & Simplicity: Prioritized large, high-contrast text and intuitive navigation for non-technical users.
Cultural & Educational Relevance: Integrated local school colors, imagery, and content written in accessible English.
Sustainability: Trained school staff to update the site independently, ensuring long-term usability.