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Bold Visit Mtmary.edu Toggle navigation About Services Speaking Insights ContactHome Past Issues About Read the latest issue Past Issues Bringing user experience to life Two UX design students unleashed their skills to re-envision the university website. This summer, user experience design (UX) students Winla Vang and Galilea Garnica got the chance to put their classroom skills to use in a real-world project: a redesign of the Mount Mary website. User experience is a field that combines psychology with design, considering ways to make products more accessible and usable. Frequently, the term refers to designing for the digital realm, such as apps and websites. Working with the university marketing and communication team, the two students examined ways to improve the Mount Mary website for visitors, particularly current and prospective students. Vang and Garnica worked together to find solutions using the design thinking process learned during their UX design courses. They focused their effort on the most frequently visited pages of the site and how they could function more efficiently for users. They conducted a comprehensive study of similar university websites using a SWOT analysis, which involved identifying strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. This allowed the students to compare and contrast how other schools displayed their information. In addition to the SWOT analysis, the students also collected extensive user data utilizing a campus-wide survey, user interviews … Continue reading Bringing user experience to life” Read More Tech Haven connects campus with digital technology The Haggerty Library is home to the Tech Haven, a new hub for connecting students, faculty and staff with tools for bringing creative visions to life. Located on the library’s lower level, the Tech Haven is part of a STEM by Design grant recently acquired by the university. The space holds PC and Mac computers with access to the Adobe Creative Cloud suite of design software, as well as a separate room for podcasting. Digital Literacy Specialist Sarah O’Connell oversees the center and serves as its ambassador and trainer, helping to educate the campus community about the available resources. The Tech Haven has seen a flurry of activity, with classes already stopping in to take advantage of the recording equipment for class projects or just get help learning the basics of commonly used computer programs. O’Connell stresses the importance of promoting digital literacy as an essential skill for both classroom and career success, but adds that the learning curve of unfamiliar technology can sometimes feel intimidating. People assume because students are digital natives that they’re automatically familiar with this technology, which isn’t necessarily true,” she emphasizes. O’Connell and her staff of student peer collaborators are available to … Continue reading Tech Haven connects campus with digital technology” Read More Health sciences gains cutting-edge dissection technology We place our future in their hands This fall, Mount Mary health sciences gained access to state-of-the-art technology with the arrival of a new Anatomage table. The table provides realistic anatomical modeling via 3D visualization technology. Using body scans from real cadavers, students can explore systems within the human body and interact with virtual anatomical models. Faculty can also customize lessons for the specific needs of their students, allowing for a diverse range of use across multiple programs within the Schools of Nursing, Arts and Sciences, Graduate Health and Professional programs. The Anatomage table will provide students with a deeper understanding of complex bodily systems in ways that far surpass textbooks. The table provides a safe and ethical environment in which students can interact with biological specimens in a way previously only available through access to cadaver labs. And while the experience offers similarities to real-life dissection, it reinforces an even deeper understanding by allowing a user to repeat and review a process. Since its arrival in August, the new Anatomage table has already been put into use by nursing, occupational therapy, pre-med, biology, exercise science, counseling and dietetics classes. This is a fascinating tool that offers the opportunity … Continue reading Health sciences gains cutting-edge dissection technology” Read More November 27, 2023 Feature Story Bringing user experience to life Two UX design students unleashed their skills to re-envision the university website. This summer, user experience design (UX) students Winla Vang and Galilea Garnica got the chance to put their classroom skills to use in a real-world project: a redesign of the Mount Mary website. User experience is a field that combines psychology with design, considering ways to make products more accessible and usable. Frequently, the term refers to designing for the digital realm, such as apps and websites. Working with the university marketing and communication team, the two students examined ways to improve the Mount Mary website for visitors, particularly current and prospective students. Vang and Garnica worked together to find solutions using the design thinking process learned during their UX design courses. They focused their effort on the most frequently visited pages of the site and how they could function more efficiently for users. They conducted a comprehensive study of similar university websites using a SWOT analysis, which involved identifying strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. This allowed the students to compare and contrast how other schools displayed their information. In addition to the SWOT analysis, the students also collected extensive user data utilizing a campus-wide survey, user interviews … Continue reading Bringing user experience to life” November 27, 2023 Feature Story Shaping the Future of Healthcare A look inside Mount Mary’s new School of Nursing Dr. Julie Maher compares the School of Nursing at Mount Mary University to a rare gem being polished and shaped. As dean of the recently launched program, she sees a bright future that gleams with promise and will be highly sought after. Maher envisions the nursing program quickly growing into an increasingly valuable community resource, noting the unique features of this new and quickly expanding program. But what exactly sets the Mount Mary School of Nursing apart? To Maher, the answer is twofold: first, the experience, passion and creativity of faculty. Second, the multifaceted backgrounds of students. It’s this unique combination of factors that she points to as having a distinct advantage over similar area programs. Our strength is in the diversity of our students.” Dr. Julie Maher, Dean of School of Nursing Our strength is in the diversity of our students,” says Maher. The ability to learn from one another’s cultures and backgrounds and apply this to their learning in the classroom – and in the field – ultimately leads to better outcomes, both for students and for their future patients.” Maher acknowledges a need to incorporate a … Continue reading Shaping the Future of Healthcare” November 27, 2023 Feature Story Tech Haven connects campus with digital technology The Haggerty Library is home to the Tech Haven, a new hub for connecting students, faculty and staff with tools for bringing creative visions to life. Located on the library’s lower level, the Tech Haven is part of a STEM by Design grant recently acquired by the university. The space holds PC and Mac computers with access to the Adobe Creative Cloud suite of design software, as well as a separate room for podcasting. Digital Literacy Specialist Sarah O’Connell oversees the center and serves as its ambassador and trainer, helping to educate the campus community about the available resources. The Tech Haven has seen a flurry of activity, with classes already stopping in to take advantage of the...