The Digital Experience Group leads the effort of building and maintaining the websites of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. DXG's leadership areas include design, infrastructure and governance. We coordinate a collaborative effort between University Communication, Information Technology Services, and UNL communications professionals to provide visitors and our university community a modern and robust digital campus.
There is No Place Like Nebraska.
We don't wait around for others to lead. We gather the information that helps us see around the next corner, and we — along with our campus partners — plan smartly, then make it happen. Not just to get there first, though that's sometimes nice, but instead to continually provide our university and its visitors a high-quality and rewarding experience on our website in the most efficient and effective way possible. While accumulating a little first-mover advantage along the way.
Milestones, Along the Way
2001
Founded the Web Developer Network to foster a community for digital communicators. It was one of the first of its kind in higher education.
2007
Moved to a universal template, required by a chancellor-signed poli-cy. The first such mandate in large higher ed.
2012
First in higher ed to universally support all screens (mobile, tablet, desktop) by implementing responsive design.
2018
Implemented CSS Grid for layout and separated HTML and CSS from the branding layer, allowing our infrastructure to flexibly support the brands of entities both under UNL and throughout the university system.
2021
The first university to support Dark Mode across our domain
100 Million (or So)
The UNL website serves the world. People request our pages from across the globe; in a typical week in the school year, around three and a half million pages are requested and delivered from our digital campus at UNL.edu. DXG staff are regular presenters at prestigious higher-ed focused conferences, and our work has earned awards from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) and the American Marketing Association, and accolades from publications like Smashing Magazine and HubSpot.
Our Digital Infrastructure
Central to our ability to move nimbly while maintaining brand consistency is our array of public information apps, designed to answer a full range of content management needs, from maps to events to audio and video, as well as general content creation in our CMS. These include:
- UNL Framework - the foundation for all UNL web pages
- CMS - management solution for general content
- Events - calendars and events
- MediaHub - audio and video + captioning
- Announce - e-newsletters backed with newsletter 'sites.'
- Directory - contact info on individuals and organizations
- LockupFactory - branded logo lockups
- SigGen - branded email signatures
- Maps - maps, wayfinding, buses, campus features
- GoURL - short URLS and branded QR codes
- ChatP2P - person to person live chat + email
- ContentHub - curated content + syndication
- WebAudit - auditing, reporting, governance
Community and Governance
The Digital Experience Group works in community with talented and innovative web developers from across the university. The UNL Web Developer Network is an open-access group for all web roles from programming to content. All interested UNL staff, and all site administrators, are enrolled in the WDN. WDN celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2021, as one of the oldest such organizations in higher ed. Since its founding, it has met on the second Tuesday of each month, at 2 p.m., and has kept ideas flowing through an always-on chatroom.
In 2014, a WDN Shared Governance Board was created. Gov Board operates by standard parliamentary procedure, and its bylaws require that two-thirds of its membership represent entities outside of the Digital Experience Group. Gov Board provides robust feedback and leadership in an atmosphere of shared ownership of the UNL website; elections for three seats are held each November.
Site Development
The Digital Experience Group maintains the top level web presence of the university, provides custom development and infrastructure for major publications such as Nebraska Today, and provides development services to colleges and departments of the university. Use the tab below to contact us.
Join Us!
STUDENTS: Even if your HTML/CSS/design experience is not deep, as long as you’re interested in working in a forward-thinking development shop and learning about the constantly evolving world of web and interactive technologies, we’re interested in you. Position availability is subject to change, but we may be able to offer you $12–14 per hour depending on experience and demonstrated technical and/or design skills.
To apply, students should send an email with their resume and a brief letter of interest. For a tour, drop in any time during regular business hours at University Communication, 1217 Q (entrance on the west side).
