Reimagining Student Success

Homeroom: Laying the Foundation

The project began with a clear challenge: unify fragmented systems and surface meaningful insights in a way that actually helped students succeed. As the sole UX designer, I took Dr. Poenitzsch’s high-level vision and translated it into a working prototype. The result was a high-fidelity concept that made student data both personal and actionable — from goal tracking and achievements to customizable dashboards.

That prototype became a catalyst. It resonated with leadership and earned buy-in across the district. From there, we were greenlit for a full platform redesign.

Field Work: Listening and Iterating

To move forward with confidence, I led discovery sessions with students, teachers, parents, and administrators. Every group brought their own needs and frustrations — and those conversations shaped the next phase of the product.

We brought student goals to the center of the experience. A bulletin board gave space for school and district-wide updates. Classrooms became collaborative spaces. And student achievements weren’t hidden in spreadsheets anymore — they were part of the core experience.

Along the way, we hit a critical turning point. During a design review, Dr. Poenitzsch asked why the original data visualizations were missing. I had unintentionally left them out during a refinement sprint. The fix required quick turnaround — but more importantly, a willingness to step back, realign, and ensure the product still reflected her vision.

Study Hall: Scaling the Work

That moment of adjustment helped build lasting trust, and I was promoted to Product Owner and Design Lead. I expanded the design effort into a team, introduced a scalable design system, and created a rhythm of stakeholder syncs and product reviews to keep communication tight and progress visible.

With timelines tightening, I focused on defining the minimum viable product while still maintaining quality. We prioritized feature sets ruthlessly and made decisions with both user impact and technical feasibility in mind.

Launch Day: Delivering at Scale

The platform launched in early 2025 with a carefully phased rollout. Each cohort of users was onboarded with support and guidance. Within weeks, over 10,000 users were actively engaging with the new experience.

By all accounts — from feedback to performance metrics — it was one of the district’s smoothest technology launches to date. The new platform quickly became the backbone of Bellville’s digital learning strategy.

Next Semester: Designing What’s Ahead

Following the success of the initial platform, we began work on Pathways — a new initiative designed to break away from traditional credit models and support truly personalized, outcome-based learning journeys. This new product will integrate with the original platform, and early conversations with Google have opened doors for larger-scale implementation.

Lessons in Practice

This project was a reminder that good UX isn’t just about solving problems — it’s about aligning with the people behind them. From early vision to real-world adjustments, the process demanded communication, flexibility, and a deep respect for the users we were designing for.

In the end, we didn’t just launch software. We built a tool that helps students define who they are and where they’re going.

To help garner future district expansions, I created this promotion video to help internal sales teams explain the platform: