The static HTML site we had helped the Sisters of the Sacred Heart build years earlier had grown to such a point that we began looking for an easier way to manage the content. The site is largely translated into three languages (French, Spanish, and English) and so each update was requiring much more effort than was necessary.
We rebuilt the site and transitioned all of the existing content into a new content management system (Joomla! 1.0), installing a multilingual component that allowed us to manage all the translations. It also provides a handy language-switching module so that if you land on a page that you want to see, you can simply flip languages instead of having to go to the homepage for another language and try to navigate your way back to the page you wanted.
We also set up a members-only area with news from the Mother House and an interactive discussion area among the sisters.
The website is a deep, content-rich resource, featuring art and poetry from the sisters and seasonal prayers. It functions as a spiritual place for lay people to visit and a site for sisters to share their faith.
During the General Chapter (where a new Superior General and Council is chosen) the website was used to share videos, blogs, and photos of the election and gatherings. It allowed people from around the world to feel a part of the proceedings even if they weren’t there physically and we received many grateful comments because of this "first" for the Society of the Sacred Heart.
As of March 2009 the third version of the site has been completed! We now have a Joomla! 1.5 website which offers better security and better search engine optimization. The Joomla! 1.5 upgrade includes a new version of the language component that controls the French and Spanish translations of the site.