The Light Bringer Project, a nonprofit dedicated to building community through art and education, recently approached Jericho Road Pasadena for help in fine-tuning the website of its latest initiative, Locavore Lit LA. The model program combines online literary journal, curriculum resource and classroom presenter to introduce local students to the works of LA writers and artists.
To help the organization add speed and responsiveness to its website, JRP called on volunteer web wizard Luis Hernandez Cruz. Luis worked with site creator Graeme Fordyce to create a more responsive home page, better-aligned modules, enhanced desktop and mobile functioning and more.
“Getting the mobile home page to work well was critical,” notes Graeme. “Thanks to Luis’s skills, we went from an inaccessible page to one that’s usable, accessible, and aesthetically strong. The results look great on desktop and mobile.” Light Bringer Special Projects Manager Kat Ward was pleased, too. “Making the website more user-friendly will boost traffic to the site and keep users there longer,” she said. “That increases our program’s level of success.”
Part online literary journal, part educator’s resource center, and part community salon, Locavore Lit LA seeks to bring area writers, artists, and educators together to inspire young minds with a love of reading, writing, and the visual arts. The program is primarily funded by the City of Los Angeles, Department of Cultural Affairs. It was formerly delivered in partnership with USC’s Neighborhood Academic Initiative (NAI).
Aiming to fill the gap left by expensive, monolithic, and often outdated textbooks, the program’s yearly literary journals will showcase a collection of short fiction and nonfiction, poetry, articles, essays, memoir excerpts and artwork created especially for the organization by writers and artists primarily from the Los Angeles region. Contents are chosen to resonate with LA-based youth and celebrate the full diversity of Los Angeles, its culture, and its people. The journals are paired with tailormade lesson plans designed to help teachers introduce locally produced writing and artwork into their classrooms.
Luis enjoyed not only the project, but learning about Locavore Lit LA. Overall, he says, “it was an excellent experience.”
Thanks to volunteer Linda Taubenreuther for writing JRP social media posts!