Context & Mission
The Rizal Center’s website was not meeting the needs of its community.
The Rizal Center has long served as a cultural hub for Filipino Americans in Chicago. However, their old website wasn’t keeping up. It felt outdated, hard to navigate, and disconnected from the community it aimed to serve. Our team partnered with the Filipino American Council of Greater Chicago (FACGC) to overhaul the site into a welcoming, accessible, and culturally meaningful digital hub.
Understanding the Audience
We interviewed and surveyed users across three generations to guide our design.
We surveyed 61 users and conducted 12 interviews with seniors, parents, and younger adults. Their input shaped three personas and a storyboard that helped us prioritize features across different needs, habits, and devices. Rather than generalizing, we designed around specific, recurring user stories.
Maria, a busy mother, wants to share Filipino culture with her kids.
Helen, a tech-savvy retiree, is looking for cultural connection and easier access to events.
Antonio, a retiree in Chicago, stays socially active through in-person community events but struggles with navigating websites and prefers direct communication.
Daniel, a 30-year-old professional, moves to Chicago and finds his way to a community potluck through the Rizal Center’s updated website.
These stories shaped our priorities and allowed us to balance usability with emotional/cultural resonance.
Insights & User Research
Users wanted clearer navigation, up-to-date content, and stronger digital connection.
Our survey of 61 participants and 12 follow-up interviews showed that users across generations had different needs but shared frustrations with the old site.
Older adults often relied on desktops, had trouble finding key features like the newsletter signup, and preferred phone or in-person communication.
Younger users accessed the site via mobile and wanted faster access to events and volunteer opportunities.
Despite most users preferring in-person events, nearly 70% expressed interest in online features like a newsletter, photo gallery, or announcements to help them stay involved from a distance.
Many described the site as feeling outdated or “archival,” signaling a need for more dynamic, community-driven content.
These findings helped us prioritize accessibility improvements, clearer content structure, and features that supported digital belonging.
Design Goals
Improve usability across age groups and increase connection to the Center.
We set measurable goals: 80% of seniors should be able to confidently use the site, and over half of users should report feeling more connected after using it. We also aimed to create a system that the FACGC team could update independently.
Research & Strategy
We used card sorting and an impact-effort matrix to focus on what mattered most.
Card sorting helped us simplify and reorganize the site’s structure based on how users expected to find content. The impact-effort matrix allowed us to identify high-value, quick-win features such as:
An events calendar with filtering and pop-up RSVPs
A persistent, well-placed newsletter sign-up
Quick action buttons to reduce friction
A resource spotlight on the homepage
Visual labels to help categorize types of events
Testing Outcomes & Impact
Usability testing showed major improvements in speed and satisfaction.
We ran a between-subjects usability test with 40 participants comparing the old vs. new site.
Task times dropped by 77% on mobile and 55% on desktop
Event discovery on mobile was 92% faster
SUS scores rose from 77 to 89 (96th percentile)
Users felt more likely to attend in-person events after using the new version
If I Had More Time…
I would have expanded inclusive testing, refined wording, and supported long-term implementation.
With more time, I would’ve conducted dedicated testing sessions with Tagalog-speaking seniors and users with low digital literacy to better validate accessibility across language and ability. I’d A/B test navigation labels like “Community” and “Contribute,” which some users found unclear. I also would’ve piloted CMS training with staff and explored additional participatory features like user-submitted photos or testimonials to bring more community voice onto the site.