State University offers an extensive catalog of courses, classes, and certifications across a wide range of disciplines, from engineering to social sciences. Its student and professional population is highly diverse.
Learner Personas:
The following personas will provide insights into this diversity and serve as an introduction to the project's problem statement.
Naomi works as one of five training specialists on the Learning and Development (L&D) team at a manufacturing company. With a manufacturing background, Naomi previously held roles such as Lean Coach and Quality Control Specialist before joining the L&D team.
In her current role, which she has held for a year and a half, Naomi is responsible for coordinating and facilitating training for the company's logistics teams. She is interested in applying for a newly opened position in her department: Associate Instructional Designer.
Over the past year and a half, Naomi has gained experience using various content creation tools, including Rise360, Storyline, Camtasia, Vyond, and Canva. She is also familiar with the instructional design framework used by her team, having participated in several discovery calls and training effectiveness reviews.
One of Naomi's long-term goals is to earn an advanced degree in Instructional Design. She believes this would provide her with the foundational knowledge and insights she needs to excel in her current role and future opportunities, whether or not she secures the Associate Instructional Designer position. Her strong manufacturing background, combined with a degree in Instructional Design, would enhance her contributions to the L&D team.
Naomi is also certified as a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt, a credential she earned in her previous role in the Quality department from State’s University. She was pleased to discover that the same university offers a Master’s degree in Instructional Design, making it one of her top choices for further education. The part-time program would allow her to continue working while pursuing her studies, which is particularly appealing.
While preparing her application for the program, Naomi learned that applicants are strongly encouraged to submit a portfolio showcasing relevant work. Although she has created smaller pieces of content, such as microlearnings and guides, she is unfamiliar with platforms for creating and sharing instructional design portfolios. She doesn’t believe her current employer uses a platform for this purpose, so she plans to research her options and consult with the Instructional Design team for suggestions.
Naomi has six months before the application deadline, giving her ample time to research, potentially learn a new tool, and create her portfolio. With a full-time job and a one-year-old baby, she needs a platform or service that is easy to use, affordable, and manageable. Hiring a professional to develop a website for her portfolio is not a viable option due to cost and her desire to be hands-on throughout the process.
Naomi uses a Windows laptop at work and a MacBook at home. She has 3 to 5 examples of work in different formats—such as SCORM files, PNG and JPEG graphics, and MP4 videos—that she plans to include in her portfolio. She is also considering adding a copy of her resume to showcase her extensive manufacturing experience. If she completes her portfolio in time, she may use it to apply for the internal Associate Instructional Designer position as well.
"I need an easy-to-use and affordable platform where I can be hands-on in building my portfolio. It should support multiple formats like SCORM files, graphics, and videos without needing a professional web developer. I want control over how it's presented to showcase my skills while balancing my full-time job and family life.”
Victoria is a PhD student in urban planning at State’s University. She started her program last summer. Prior to that, she worked as a consultant for an urban planning firm in her native France.
During her time as a consultant, Victoria participated in and eventually led several urban planning projects across the globe. In her final year as a consultant, she traveled to over 25 cities across four continents, either for projects or professional events. During these travels, Victoria documented her reflections, lessons learned, and ideas in numerous notes, which she has saved on her MacBook M3 Pro.
Although she no longer travels for work, Victoria has been involved in field trips and other research activities as part of her PhD program at State’s University. She continues to capture her reflections in her notes.
Since starting her PhD, Victoria has also adopted new tools for her note-taking, such as knowledge management principles to structure her research, and software like Obsidian to create templates and organize her notes into categories. This approach has enabled her to manage and visualize all her notes—whether from her professional career, PhD research, or personal life—in one centralized place.
One of the challenges she faced while learning how to use knowledge management tools like Obsidian was learning the Markdown (.md) syntax used to store content in the notes. However, after converting a few of her old Microsoft Word notes into the new format, she quickly became comfortable with it. Victoria now believes that the benefits of centralizing her notes far outweigh the initial learning curve.
Now three months into her PhD program, with at least four more years before graduation, Victoria has been thinking about ways to remain relevant in the urban planning field. She understands the importance of staying active on social media to maintain her professional network, but she’s also considering another channel to share the content she has been creating in her notes over the years—something like a blog. Ideally, she wants a platform she can fully control and manage, giving her freedom from social media algorithms and regulations.
She is considering starting her own blog but hasn’t yet decided how to proceed or which platform to use.
Although content management platforms exist for this purpose, their subscription models and pricing options are something she wants to avoid—especially since more customization often comes with higher costs, which could add up significantly over the remaining four years of her studies.
Her current alternative is to develop and host her own site. This prospect excites her, but she acknowledges that it’s an area where she has little to no practical experience. While trying to learn on her own, Victoria has found plenty of resources, but none that offer a cohesive, structured approach tailored to her specific needs.
"I want the freedom to create and fully customize my own blog, without being tied to expensive subscriptions or the limitations of social media platforms. Learning how to build and host my own site excites me, but I need a structured approach to navigate the complexities and ensure the site fits my vision and professional needs.”
Jordan is an industrial engineer currently studying cloud computing at State’s University. Most of his professional experience comes from working on projects in the vehicle manufacturing industry, but he is eager to break into the tech industry. To get started, he decided to take a few courses focused on tech, particularly in cloud computing. He began with a basic Python programming course at State’s University, and after having a positive experience that aligned with his goals, he enrolled in the Cloud Computing Fundamentals course he's currently taking. Once he finishes, Jordan plans to take an advanced Python course before applying for his first tech role.
Jordan is well aware of the tech industry's reputation for having rigorous hiring processes. He’s heard from peers in his classes that many employers ask for portfolios showcasing applied tech skills.
So far, Jordan has developed a few solutions in his programming courses and is working on a larger project as part of his Cloud Computing Fundamentals course. He’s eager to showcase these in his portfolio but hasn't yet decided which platform or tools to use.
While he has some basic familiarity with websites, Jordan has not taken any formal web development courses. Most of his work is stored in a GitHub repository, so he wants a portfolio solution that is compatible with GitHub or can easily integrate his work. He also wants enough freedom to customize the portfolio to his liking. One key priority for Jordan is using his own personalized domain, as he believes it will make his portfolio appear more professional.
He knows platforms like Wix, WordPress, and Squarespace offer content management and hosting services, but he estimates these could cost up to $200 per year, which he’s hesitant to spend.
Jordan has heard that GitHub offers free hosting for static websites, but he’s not entirely sure what a static site is or how to get started. He feels there’s a lack of structured information to help him evaluate this option and begin building his site.
"I want a flexible and affordable way to build a portfolio that integrates with GitHub and allows me to use my own domain. It needs to be professional but easy to manage, even without formal web development experience.”
Business Need/Problem Statement:
Multiple students across different programs at State University (PhD, Industrial Engineering, Instructional Design) need to create professional web portfolios/sites. These students lack structured guidance on building static websites despite having technical capabilities. The university's current curriculum doesn't address this common need, and students are seeking costly alternatives (e.g. Wix, Squarespace, WordPress) or struggling to find cohesive resources, which could impact their academic success and professional transitions.
By offering a training solution focused on building static websites using free tools (e.g., Jekyll, GitHub Pages), State University can empower students to develop the digital skills they need to create low-cost, fully customizable web portfolios.
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Target: 80% of enrolled students successfully create and deploy their professional portfolios.
Target: 40% of students securing internships, jobs, or other professional opportunities report using their portfolio in successful job applications.
Target: 10% increase in non-STEM students enrolling in complementary technical courses.
Learning Gap & Learning Outcomes:
The gap is between students' current basic understanding of websites and their ability to design, develop, and manage a cost-effective static site. The training program would help bridge this by moving them from recognizing and understanding basic concepts to analyzing, evaluating, and creating web portfolios.
Learning Outcomes
Modular Framework:
Here’s a list of modules in the "Static Sites 101" program, designed to cover the key topics needed.
Module 1: Topics & Subtopics
Module 2: Topics & Subtopics
Module 3: Topics & Subtopics
Module 4: Topics & Subtopics
Module 5: Topics & Subtopics
Module 6: Topics & Subtopics
Module 7: Topics & Subtopics
Module 8: Topics & Subtopics
Mode of delivery:
The delivery mode for "Static Sites 101" will be digital asynchronous.
Digital Asynchronous
The digital learning experience will be self-paced, featuring a variety of resources like eLearning courses, learning aids, and instructional videos. As the course runs twice a year, deadlines for completing and submitting work will follow a semester-based schedule.
Building blocks & formats:
The learning experience design will be built on three core elements: Content, Activities, and Assessment/Feedback. Since this program is digital and asynchronous, there will be no live facilitation.
The formats within these elements include eLearning courses (one for each module in the framework), screencasts that walk through the step-by-step process of creating a static site, interactive PDFs or downloadable "cheat sheets" with reference materials, and quizzes.
Each module will begin with a short three-question pre-assessment and conclude with a comprehensive ten-question evaluation.
Learning flow:
The learning experience design for "Static Sites 101" will use a linear flow model applied across all program modules.
The program follows a structured, step-by-step approach, with the eight modules arranged sequentially. Learners must complete each module in full before progressing to the next.
Given the technical nature of the training, completing the modules in order is essential, as certain foundational activities, such as installing software or dependencies, are prerequisites for more advanced topics that build upon them.
The focus on static site development for this certification project was influenced by the learner personas section from Module 3: Learning Experience (LX) Design.
After learning about static websites and their applications earlier this year, I was struck by how simply and affordably one could create a fully functional website.
When I shared this discovery with friends and colleagues, several practical applications emerged naturally from our conversations: creating instructional design portfolios, starting blogs independent of third-party content management platforms, and developing innovative, shareable resumes that stand out from the crowd.
These were real needs expressed by real people, highlighting a significant opportunity.
Through some research, I noticed a significant gap in the available resources: while there are many free materials, such as technical documentation and YouTube videos covering specific aspects of the process, there was no comprehensive, structured approach to teaching static website development.
The scattered nature of available resources meant significant time investment in trial and error, creating unnecessary friction given that creating static sites requires only basic to intermediate computational literacy.
This fragmentation of resources often discouraged potentially interested learners from exploring this technology.
The need for a structured program that could simplify the "how" of static sites inspired the creation of my learner personas, all based on real needs and experiences.
I decided to develop this final project as a static site to gather practical feedback on how a structured approach might work, essentially using the development process as a real-world laboratory for understanding the challenges and opportunities in teaching this technology.
These two elements—extensive conversations with interested individuals and hands-on implementation of my own static site—provided sufficient insight to begin designing the Learning Experience.
The process of creating my own site served as a valuable proof of concept and helped identify potential stumbling blocks that learners might encounter.
The three personas and their specific pain points emerged from real conversations, while the fictional "State University" was created to unite these diverse use cases under a single training solution.
“State University” provided a realistic context for implementing the training program and addressing various learner needs simultaneously.
For the persona portraits, I used an AI image generator with prompts describing each character's attributes and setting, creating representations that helped bring these personas to life.
While the problem statement was also distilled from real conversations, I included a detailed cost comparison of different content management solutions to establish a benchmark and assign monetary value to the why of the learning solution.
This financial analysis helped develop the learning gap and outcomes while providing concrete justification for the training program's development.
The learning outcomes were crafted using the SMART framework, considering the personas' assumed basic knowledge of static site technologies and their desired end states.
From my experience in instructional design, using the SMART framework for learning objectives and connecting KPIs or metrics to monetary value during ADDIE's Analyze and Design phases is very important for gaining stakeholder alignment. This helps communicating how the program achieves measurable value to both learners and the institution.
The training program's eight modules and their sequence reflect my personal learning journey in creating a static site, refined through user feedback and best practices in instructional design.
The progression moves from general to specific concepts, addressing software installation and dependencies before advancing to more complex topics.
This, in turn, influenced the decision to maintain a linear learning flow, eliminating potential confusion or technical issues that might arise from following steps out of sequence.
This structured approach directly addresses the lack of organization reported by users and provides a clear pathway to create a static site.
After successfully launching the first version of this static website using various internet resources, I opted for a digital asynchronous delivery mode based on both learner preferences and practical considerations.
This approach—combining structured step-by-step videos, reinforcement quizzes, and comprehensive reference "cheat sheets"—optimizes both participant time and training deployment resources.
The implementation at "State University" includes a completion schedule for modules and project submission requirements to track program KPIs.
Based on my practical experience and user testing, I found that static site development could be effectively learned through clear instructions and key concept clarification, eliminating the need for more resource-intensive blended or synchronous delivery modes. This asynchronous approach better aligns with learner personas' demands for structured, on-demand content.
The decision to focus on asynchronous delivery also supports scalability, allowing the program to reach more learners without requiring proportional increases in instructional resources.
In my professional experience, the Learning Experience Design stage stands as the most rewarding phase of any project.
Defining the who (through detailed personas), the why (in a clear problem statement and cost analysis), the what (through learning outcomes), and the how (through structured delivery methods) brings clarity to the role of training in solving specific challenges.
Getting to this stage and articulating these insights to stakeholders is very gratifying, as it often leads to "aha" moments where stakeholders recognize possibilities they hadn't considered to solve a problem.
