WordPress Rebuild with Shared Content and Systems
Overview
Merici College has four separate websites: the main College site, News, International Baccalaureate (IB) Program, and the ‘official’ Corporate site. The IB website is a new addition, while the others were originally built in Drupal.
The project involved rebuilding all four as standalone WordPress websites, making sure they felt clearly connected while making it easy for users to understand where they were at any given time. A key focus was improving usability, simplifying content management, and creating a setup that could be maintained and extended over time.
My Role
I led the technical side of the (re)build across all four sites, including information architecture, custom development and content migration. I led the initial planning and card sorting workshop, combining UX strategy with deep knowledge of the school’s structure and audience needs. I also worked closely with the clients' internal IT team to connect the new websites and shared news feeds to their digital signage system.
The Approach
We started with the IB website, which was designed and built first using the updated visual identity. This site became the reference point for the remaining three.
Each website was built from the ground up and tailored to its specific purpose (enrolment, news, IB, or corporate content). At the same time, they share a consistent design system, navigation patterns, and a site switcher that allows users to move easily between sites.
Key development steps included:
- Migrating content from Drupal using cleaned CSV exports and structured imports with WP All Import Pro and Advanced Custom Fields
- Building a shared theme foundation that could be adapted per site without unnecessary duplication
- Implementing REST API feeds so news and events could be shared across websites and displayed on internal screens
- Structuring the WordPress back-end with clear, purpose-driven field groups to make day-to-day updates straightforward
- Supporting content planning and handover with the school’s communications team
The Outcome
The result is a group of WordPress websites that work independently but feel like part of the same system. Each site has a clear role and audience, while remaining easy to navigate and simple for staff to maintain.
Shared content feeds reduce duplication and help keep information consistent across platforms. The technical setup also gives Merici a flexible foundation that can grow with their needs, without having to revisit core decisions.
