Wesley Theological Seminary

The Organization

Wesley Theological Seminary is a United Methodist–affiliated graduate school of theology in Washington, D.C., preparing students for ministry, scholarship, and public theology.

The Challenge

This higher education website redesign had to solve for two conversion paths at once: donations and applications. The seminary’s site had an outdated design and a backend that made routine updates a burden for staff, and the seminary needed a rebuild that modernized the visitor experience while consolidating both priorities.

The Build

Built on WordPress and Elementor, with a custom design inspired by stained glass windows tying the seminary’s visual history to a modern layout, the rebuild gave department heads a role-and-permission structure so they can each edit only their own areas. Gravity Forms was configured to generate dynamic application forms based on the specific program a visitor selects, and where they entered the funnel.

• Mega menu built to keep the full site within three clicks of any page
• Consolidated, simplified donation process and a distilled application path with “Start Your Application” CTAs placed at key decision points
• BugHerd used throughout for precise client-marked edits

The Result

Staff can now update content and manage program pages directly through WordPress and Elementor, without relying on an outside developer for routine changes, and prospective students have a clearer path from interest to application.