Our goals for Barr’s website are to clearly express our mission, values, and grantmaking priorities; spotlight the work and impact of our grantees; share insights with others in our fields; and facilitate collaboration with partners.
With this redesign, we wanted to create a better experience for our visitors, particularly our grantee partners, peers in the social sector, and grant seekers. Here are a few features that we’re especially excited to share:
Simplified Navigation
We simplified the site’s architecture for ease of navigation, organizing information by four main content types: Programs, Grantmaking, About Us, and Insights.
By hovering over Programs, you can easily see all of the areas that Barr funds. On each program page, you can learn more about the associated strategies, initiatives, and grantees driving change.
About Us provides information about who we are as an organization, highlighting our mission, values, and people. Separate pages break up content that was previously a long scroll, allowing users to jump directly to the information they’re seeking. We also added a Careers page to make it easy to find job opportunities (such as our active search for a President), and to learn more about what it’s like to work at Barr.
Insights houses all of our blog posts, news, and reports connected to our learning and evaluation efforts. We regularly publish content here to keep our partners informed about what’s happening at the Foundation and to share what we’re learning as a funder, in hopes that it will inform and inspire actions by others. On the blog (now called News + Insights), we are proud to feature stories of progress from our grantees and perspectives on current events from our program officers.
Searchable Grants Database
Under Grantmaking, you can find a database with all of our grants from the past five years. The interactive database allows visitors to sort by program area or strategy, or search for key terms such as “performing arts” or “leadership.” Visitors can also gain perspective on how individual grants connect to larger efforts.
Alternatives for Community and Environment
Flexible, Vibrant Design
Vibrant photos of our grantees’ work in action are core elements of the design. Our partners inspire us and make Barr’s work possible, so it’s only natural that they shine.
An expanded visual identity complements these photos with soft edges and a hand drawn brushstroke, speaking to the dynamic nature of social change, and the role of creativity in imagining and realizing a better future.
Adaptable modules provide flexibility for evolving needs and make space to communicate ideas through graphics and video. We look forward to carrying these new design elements into other Barr branded communications.
“Our partners inspire us and make Barr’s work possible, so it’s only natural that they shine.”
Gratitude to our Partners
We want to extend our appreciation to our website design partner, Alloy for their beautiful work and partnership.
And, we’d like to thank our longstanding partner, Threespot, whose team designed, launched, and supported our previous website through all of its refinements and evolutions over the past ten (!) years.
As you explore the site, we welcome your feedback. Email us at communications@barrfoundation.org or join the conversation on LinkedIn. Your insights will help us evolve the site to better serve our shared goals.
Connect with Us
We invite you to follow us on LinkedIn, which has become our primary social media channel for sharing Foundation news and insights, and on BlueSky.
We also hope you subscribe to our newsletter or update your email preferences so we can send you the content that matters most to you.
