SAS Site Studio is a design system that supports more than 100 Drupal-based sites across the School of Arts & Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania. An outside vendor supported the development of the core system, while the SAS team executed all design work in-house, including layouts, custom illustration, photography, and visuals. In addition, our developers built key features and enhancements on top of the system. Prior to SAS Site Studio, site production was inconsistent: Each project followed a different workflow, client communication was fragmented, visual branding was uneven, and design revisions were frequent with little time for custom art. Site Studio introduces a structured, predictable project roadmap, with clear phases, defined points of contact, built-in photography, custom illustration, and hero video production, along with flexible content layouts. The system provides six ADA-compliant color themes, two typographic themes, drag-and-drop editing for academic units, and updates that can be pushed to multiple sites simultaneously. By consolidating processes, standardizing design elements, and expanding capacity for custom visuals—including photography, illustration, and hero video—SAS Site Studio enables academic units to maintain individuality while strengthening the overall SAS brand.
From the Judges
This is a highly ambitious and sophisticated effort that goes beyond a single micro-site to establish a scalable design system supporting a large portfolio of academic websites.
