IT Releases New ExeterConnect

An updated Exeter Connect page utilizing the Microsoft Sharepoint collaborative platform software debuted on Wednesday, Jan. 8. 

On the new site, components of ExeterConnect, such as the Community Directory and the Dining Menus, were rearranged differently within the new layout of the website. The homepage now is organized into sections providing the dining menu options for the day, announcements for upcoming events, and other features that resemble the features provided on the Exeter Connect site used prior to the updates.

The IT SharePoint Migration Team, comprised of members from the school’s Information Technology (IT) Department: Kathy Pottle, Guy Kayton, John Foley and Julia Looi, along with two outside consultants, directed the project. The team upgraded the site from the previously-used SharePoint 2010 platform to a more secure cloud-based SharePoint Online platform. Additionally, the team added a new layout for the site and new available features.

The remodeling of Exeter Connect has been underway since last February shortly after the new Director of Technology Services, Scott Heffner, joined the team. Ultimately, a lack of security coverage by Microsoft prompted the update. “Since Exeter Connect is on the Internet, we couldn’t risk being on a platform that no longer receives security patches from Microsoft,” Heffner said. “Secondarily, the old Exeter Connect was highly customized, making it hard to manage and very cumbersome to upgrade.”

The IT team has been planning out the transition to the new mobile-friendly SharePoint cloud version for about a year. Senior Web Software Developer Kayton has provided some insight into the team’s process for the site’s updates as he explained, “We had to migrate sites, documents and data,” Kayton said.  “We also had to migrate the underline support of user groups and emails from our on premise Active Directory to groups and emails in the cloud with Office 365.”

Other than the overall new look and user interface for the Exeter Connect site, the IT SharePoint Migration Team has implemented multiple special updates and features. The News Post feature allows key editors to share news, and mobile phone users that have installed the SharePoint application can be notified with pop-up messages. 

Additionally, at the top of the Exeter Connect page, the home page will notify the school community about the latest events on campus. There is personalization available for students and faculty in the “Favorites” page and the “Frequent Sites” section, which lists the user’s most regularly visited sites on the platform. 

Another visible change to the Connect page was the addition of student birthdays. It was not a complete addition from the old website; birthdays were available to faculty and staff.  According to Foley, “There was a birthday list but didn’t have pictures”. 

Student birthday pictures were added to increase student engagement and let more people know of their peer’s birthdays. Looi explained, “To ensure that we did not violate any student-related privacy regulation, we first consulted with the Dean of Students office.” 

Since the update, some students have had problems with Connect. The main issue related to the College Counseling website Naviance. “Naviance was an interesting example because the process worked as expected when we worked with the few students who experienced issues with logging into Naviance,” Looi said. Ultimately, Looi noted, the source of the Naviance issue was found to be a bad link that the students were using, which has since been updated.

Other problems include errors relating to permissions and access, and content missed during the data migration from the prior to current site, Looi noted. Another mishap was that in the Student Council page, the “People” tab led to not a student roster, but People Magazine. 

Despite these factors, the IT department is pleasantly surprised with the relative ease of the transition. “If you look at previous implementations, this has been much smoother,” Foley said. “If you look at it like that on the scale of other implementations. I’m talking about the little tiny details.”

Many students appreciated the changes made by the Sharepoint Team. “I think the update was good and much needed. I did have some trouble finding stuff, but I think that once I get used to it, it would be fine,” senior Jason Huang said.

Others harbor some mixed feelings about the update. “I did have some difficulty navigating it in the beginning though because I didn’t know where things like LionLinks were under different tabs,” lower Stella Shattuck said. “I personally think the site looks a lot cleaner in the sense that everything seems to be more organized and put together.”

The new update will remain for some time as the Academy’s safe, secure and efficient intranet, containing many new features intended to better both student and faculty life. “It is amazing to see how far we’ve come.  We’ve not only secured the site but we’ve made it more flexible, accessible and secure,” Heffner said. “I’m proud of the work that our Kathy, Guy, John, Julia and our consultants Alex and Tony have done.”