Huston-Tillotson University Archives

Overview

Understand how researchers access and request information from archives website.

For many community researchers, they are in search of locating historical records to fulfill research needs. The Huston-Tillotson University Archives serves as the long-term repository for the institutional records of the University.

The Challenge

Researchers who are seeking information about people who attended a historical institution need to access information from the institution’s website. The researcher needs to request information while exploring what is already available online in the institutions digital repository.

Question

A researcher needs a quick and easy way to request an archival image so that they can add a credible image to a community publication.

Persona

Bio and Demographics

61
Lives in Northern California
Caretaker of parents
Researches family genealogy for fun
Enjoys gardening

Needs and Goals

Find photographs and letters written by her great-grandfather while he was the president at an historical educational institution.
Needs to locate where she can request information.

Frustrations

Wants to find information from the university that her grandfather attended, but doesn’t know where to go on the university website.
Wants confirmation that her request for information was received.

How might we...

Create an avenue on the university archives webpage for researchers to request scanned archival images or paper
Create a system to automatically respond to the inquiry
Engage with the researcher to learn more about their request
Respond with a solution to researcher’s request

Solution Sketches

Task Analysis

Feature/Task

Create a request button feature on the webpage.

Competitor

Local Universities

Steps to Complete Task

Google the university library website
Click on the link to the library website
Scroll the home page and click the archives button
On the archives homepage (on the left side of the page), click the request/ make an appointment button

Design Suggestion

Google the university library website
Click on the link to the library website
Scroll the home page and click the archives button
On the archives homepage (at the top of the page) click the request button

User Flow

Low-Fidelity Wireframes

Usability Test Plan

Goal(s):

Researchers will be able to explore and navigate the university archives webpage to:

Request digital scans of photos, papers, and other archival holdings and/or make an appointment.
Explore print collections stored in the archives
Explore digital archival collections.
Identify external community projects.
Learn about the archives
Learn about helpful research tips

Task 1

Request a scan of a photograph in the archives.

Task 2

Explore the university digital archives collections.

Prototype

Test Mission:

Request a digital scan on the archives webpage and submit your request
Pretend as though you need to request a photograph from the university archives webpage.