Hi, Drupalites!
We hope you're having a great summer!
On Sunday, Aug. 2, Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ State will launch a redesigned university homepage. Along with the new look, a few updates will automatically roll out to all Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ State Drupal websites.
In this issue:
- Homepage redesign (Aug. 2)
- Updated footer and CTA cards
- Accessibility reminders
- New page locking
- Website naming and URL updates
- Preparing your site for fall
- Drupal training moves to Canvas
- Element451 training updates
Homepage Redesign: What It Means for Your Site
A redesigned www.kent.edu homepage is on the way, and along with it, two updates that will appear on all Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ State Drupal sites:
A New Footer
Every site will receive the updated university footer automatically. No action is needed on your part.
A Refreshed Call to Action (CTA) Design
CTAs are getting a new card-style design that's cleaner and more consistent across the site.
What You Need to Do
Please review the length of your CTA text. The new card design gives titles and descriptions a defined space, so CTAs with long text may wrap awkwardly or get cut off. Take a few minutes to check your CTAs and trim any lengthy titles or descriptions before the new design goes live.
See the History of the Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ State Homepage
Accessibility: Next Steps
Thank you for the work you've put into the accessibility compliance initiative. While the federal deadline has been extended, continuing this work now will make next spring much easier. Many sites still have open items that must be addressed.
Tips to Jumpstart the Work
- Find and revisit the content inventory export UCM produced for you earlier this year as a starting point to identify issues that require remediation
- This is also a starting point for overall content cleanup
- Review the accessibility issues flagged in your Siteimprove report and prioritize remediation, starting with the most-used pages
- Check PDFs and other documents — these are frequently missed
- Review your PDF listing and leverage the accessibility checker that is now built into Drupal
- Wrap up remaining items methodically, sooner rather than later
- Consider setting aside one hour of working time each month
- Watch for upcoming support sessions
- Reminder: The new deadline for full compliance is April 2027.
Coming in August: Page Locking
Starting in August, Drupal will automatically lock a page while someone is editing it — so two people can no longer overwrite each other's work without realizing it.
Here's how it works:
The page locks automatically as soon as you click "Edit." While you're editing, other users will be able to see that the page is locked. Anyone else who attempts to edit the page will see who currently has it locked, when the lock began, and will be unable to save.
Really need in? You can break a lock using the link in the lock message. Use this sparingly: If you break someone's lock, their unsaved changes will be lost. They'll get a message that their save was unsuccessful. When in doubt, check with the other editor first.
To see what's locked on your site, go to your content list (/admin/content) and click the "Locked Content" tab.
What You Need to Do
Nothing changes about how you edit day to day — just be aware of the new lock messages, and be considerate about breaking a lock. If you hit a lock that seems stale (say, from someone who left an edit window open and went to lunch), that's exactly what the break-lock option is for.
Follow-Up: Website Name and URL Changes
The URL updates we announced in May are now complete:
- /ehs → Education and Human Services (formerly /ehhs)
- /phhs → Public Health and Health Sciences (formerly /publichealth)
- /sh → Sciences and Humanities (formerly /cas)
- /graduate-student-resources (formerly /graduatecollege)
- /lifelong-learning → Integrated /cde, /techprep and /yourtrainingpartner
- Honors Education and Global Education did not undergo url changes, however, the name
- Honors College has been replaced with either
- Honors Education
- College of Honors and Global Education
- Office of Global Education or OGE has been replaced with either
- Global Education
- College of Honors and Global Education
- No further use of "office"
- Honors College has been replaced with either
If you haven't already, please review your website(s) for lingering references to the previous college names and URLs — page copy, links, PDFs and any downloadable materials. Redirects are in place, but updating links directly is better for our users and for search.
Get Your Site Ready for Fall
Fall semester is the busiest season for our websites. Now is the perfect time to:
- Review your key landing pages for outdated information dates, names and events
- Confirm contact information and office hours are current
- Remove or unpublish content that's no longer relevant
A quick pass now saves your visitors confusion in August.
Drupal Training Is Moving to Canvas!
Drupal training is now a self-paced online course in Canvas.
The new course covers everything the live sessions did, broken into short modules with quick knowledge checks. It takes about 90 minutes to two hours total, and you can pause anytime and pick back up right where you left off.
What that means for you:
- No more scheduling. There's no session to wait for and no calendar to work around. Register, and once your accounts are set up, work through the course whenever fits your week, which should be especially welcome for student employees juggling classes.
- Practice is built in and required. Training has always included hands-on exercises; the difference is that the course is now built around them. You'll work in your own private training group as you go, and finishing means submitting that work for review, so everyone comes out the other side with real editing experience.
- Advanced is included. Drupal Advanced now lives in the same course as optional modules that unlock when you finish Drupal Basics. No separate registration needed.
- In-person or Teams group working sessions will be introduced. While the basics are now available on demand, we will launch in-person opportunities for editors to connect, share ideas and continue learning together. Watch for future user groups, advanced workshops and networking sessions where you'll be able to ask questions, explore new features and learn from fellow Drupal editors across the university.
And the course will keep growing: We'll add new advanced modules over time and announce them right here on the listserv, so keep an eye out.
Already registered for an upcoming session? There's nothing you need to do or watch for. We'll reach out to you directly with the new registration link and get you moved over.
Everyone else can register anytime using our Drupal training registration form.
Element451 Overviews, Trainings & Office Hours
What Is Element451?
Element451 is Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ State's enterprise-wide email marketing platform, available free to university departments and units for sending newsletters, listservs and other email communications.
We've combined registration for Element451 overviews, trainings and office hours into a single form. Before you register, here's a quick look at each option to help you choose the session that's right for you.
Interested in Element451? Let Us Give You an Overview
Learn what Element451 can do, explore key features and discuss whether it's a good fit for your team's communication needs. Overview sessions are scheduled individually at a time that works for you.
Ready to Get Started With Element451? Join a Training Session
Learn how to create, build and send emails in Element451 during this guided, hands-on training. Trainings are held on alternating Tuesdays from 1:30-2:30 p.m.
Already Trained? Bring Your Questions to Office Hours
Drop in for personalized help with campaigns, templates, troubleshooting or any other Element451 questions. Office hours are held on the Tuesdays between training sessions from 1:30-2:30 p.m.
Thanks for everything you do to keep Ñý¼§Ö±²¥ State's web presence accurate, accessible and up to date. Have a great rest of your summer, and we'll see many of you this fall!
If you have questions or need assistance, please submit a ticket through our Support & Training page.
Web Team
Lin Danes, Executive Director of Digital Communications (Web Services)
Jared Boehm, Senior Manager of Digital Enterprise Solutions
Tim Priester, Web Designer and Services Lead
Todd Randolph, Senior Applications Developer
Paul McKinney, Web Designer
Erin Lampert, Web Designer
James Parsons, Web Content Coordinator
Ella Benore, Student Web Support Specialist