CSJ Learning Connection (Brentwood, NY) is a nonprofit educational program affiliated with the Sisters of St. Joseph in Brentwood, NY. The program is dedicated to supporting non-native English speakers - only women - by teaching English and helping them confidently navigate daily life in the United States. Its mission centers on empowerment, accessibility, and community support through education.
Project Overview
For this project, I led the UX research and design process end-to-end before building the final website.
I began with UX research, interviewing Program Directors to understand the organization’s goals and challenges. Then I prepared low-fidelity wireframes in Relume and conducted user testing over Zoom with teachers, students, and potential donors.
Each testing session used tailored questions aligned with specific user journeys. Insights from these conversations directly shaped the site’s structure, content, and tone. I iterated continuously based on feedback, running multiple rounds of wireframe testing on Zoom in both English and Spanish (with students) to ensure clarity and ease of use for a non-technical and non–English-speaking audience.
After validating the direction, I created a high-fidelity prototype in Lovable and then built the production site in Webflow.
The logo was provided at the start of the project. Based on its colors, I developed the site’s color palette and proposed a typeface that balances friendliness and professionalism -values that reflect the mission and spirit of CSJ Learning Connection.
Project Implementation & Features
19-page website with a clear, scalable information architecture.
Mega menu navigation pattern for easy access to content.
Simple, approachable design tailored for non-tech-savvy users.
Content design developed and tailored for specific user needs based on research, stakeholder interviews, and user testing.
Custom language switcher (implemented with custom code due to CMS plan pricing & budget limitations).
Fully responsive across desktop, tablet, and mobile.
SEO-optimized with structured schema, descriptive image alt text, and all essential on-page best practices including SEO & AEO optimized copy.
Subtle animations and interactions to enhance usability without overwhelming users.
The final result is an accessible, intuitive website that supports the organization’s mission while meeting the needs of learners, educators, and donors alike.
Program Philosophy & Human-Centered Design
A core challenge of this project was communicating the uniqueness of CSJ Learning Connection’s approach, which goes far beyond that of a traditional school. The program is intentionally non-graded, allowing women to learn at their own pace in a supportive, pressure-free environment.
Education here is deeply connected to family and daily life. Women are encouraged to learn English through bonding with their children, often borrowing children’s books from the CSJ Learning Connection library and reading to their kids in English - transforming quality family time into meaningful language practice.
In addition, participants have access to donations and essential resources such as clothing, children’s supplies, books, and other necessities that help support them as they navigate life in the U.S. CSJ Learning Connection also offers “Support Box” meetings, where women can talk about the challenges they face at home and at work and seek counseling. These sessions allow them to decompress, share their feelings, and feel supported in a safe and welcoming environment.
Designing the website required honoring this humanity and warmth - capturing the beauty of the program for donors while ensuring the site clearly serves women looking for practical information about schedules, classes, curriculum, and the ability to read the site in Spanish. Accessibility, clarity, and emotional resonance guided every design decision.
Communicating Legacy, Scale & Impact
Another major challenge was presenting the depth and scale of the organization without overwhelming users. CSJ Learning Connection has been in existence for over 31 years, with a long - standing impact on thousands of women and families. Communicating this history - and the trust built over decades - was essential.
The website needed to reflect:
The program’s legacy and long-term impact.
The many people behind its success, including board members, teachers, and volunteers.
The reality that this is a community-powered organization, run by a large and dedicated group of individuals, in partnership with the Sisters of St. Joseph.
Balancing this depth of information with a simple, approachable structure was challenging. The final design carefully surfaces the organization’s history, leadership, and impact in a way that builds credibility and trust with donors - while remaining clear, welcoming, and easy to navigate for the women the program serves.
Additional Work
Beyond the website, I researched and evaluated multiple fundraising platforms to determine the best solution for CSJ Learning Connection’s needs, considering usability, flexibility, branding, and donor experience. Based on this research, we transitioned away from Donorbox and introduced Raisely as the new fundraising solution.
Raisely was selected for its ability to visually align with the website, allowing donation forms and campaigns to be fully branded and feel like a seamless extension of the site rather than a disconnected third-party tool. I designed and built a custom-branded fundraising campaign in Raisely and integrated it directly into the website, making it easy for donors to contribute either through the site or by visiting the campaign page directly.
In addition, I configured receipts and donor communications within Raisely and customized the platform to fit the organization’s specific needs. I also guided the team through Raisely’s capabilities, explaining its features and possibilities so they could confidently manage campaigns, donations, and donor interactions moving forward.
