Case Study  ·  Higher Education & Grant-Funded Web Design

Two Projects.
One University Partner.

Client: NC A&T State University — Greensboro, NC — America's Largest HBCU
Grads-4C — Website Redesign & LMS STEPs4GROWTH — $23.7M DOC / EDA Clean Energy
Client
NC A&T State University
Projects
Grads-4C & STEPs4GROWTH
Category
Web Design & LMS — Grant-Funded
Funding
$23.7M — Dept. of Commerce EDA
Focus
IT Partnership & Compliance
Working Inside a Major Research University
NC A&T State University is the largest HBCU in America — a major research institution running multiple federally funded programs simultaneously. Beefy Marketing was brought in to handle web design for two distinct centers within the university, each operating under its own grant structure, IT governance framework, and compliance requirements.
This kind of institutional work demands more than design skill. It requires patience, communication, and the operational discipline to move large projects forward inside complex organizational structures.
Grant Compliance, IT Coordination & Custom Billing
Both projects required tight coordination with NC A&T's IT departments — working within university security policies, hosting requirements, and accessibility standards that are stricter than typical commercial web projects. Grant compliance added another layer: every deliverable needed to align with federal reporting requirements tied to the funding source.
We also structured unique billing arrangements for each project to accommodate the grant cycles and ongoing maintenance, support, accessibility work, and staff training that come with university web partnerships.
Project 01

Grads-4C — Website Redesign & LMS Setup.

Grads-4C website — grads4c.ncat.edu — designed by Beefy Marketing
Grads-4C — grads4c.ncat.edu
Genomic Research & Data Science Center for Computation and Cloud-Computing

Grads-4C is NC A&T's center at the intersection of computational genomics, data science, and cloud computing — harnessing cutting-edge technology to drive innovation and discovery in the life sciences.

Beefy Marketing was brought in for a full website redesign of grads4c.ncat.edu. Beyond the design itself, the project included setting up and configuring a Learning Management System (LMS) to support the center's training programs, symposiums, and academic initiatives — including a dedicated 2026 Symposium section and member registration workflows.

Working through NC A&T's IT department, we ensured the site met all university hosting standards, WCAG accessibility requirements, and the compliance obligations tied to the center's grant funding.

LMS
Learning Management System
WCAG
Accessibility Compliant
IT
Dept. Partnership
Visit grads4c.ncat.edu →
Project 02

STEPs4GROWTH — $23.7M Clean Energy.

STEPs4GROWTH website — steps4growth.com — designed by Beefy Marketing
STEPs4GROWTH — steps4growth.com
Comprehensive Clean Energy Workforce Development for North Carolina & America

STEPs4GROWTH is a 4-year, $23.7 million initiative funded by the Department of Commerce's EDA Good Jobs Challenge — one of the most significant federally funded workforce development programs in the Clean Energy sector. The project is led by the Center for Energy Research & Technology (CERT) at NC A&T State University.

The mission: build the next generation of Clean Energy talent in North Carolina and establish a replicable workforce development model for the rest of the country. This required a web presence that communicated federal-scale credibility, partnered with dozens of regional employers, colleges, and workforce boards, and served as an active hub for program participants.

Beefy designed and built steps4growth.com to meet the communication, compliance, and reporting demands of a federally funded initiative — coordinating closely with CERT's team and the university's IT and grant administration departments throughout.

$23.7M
DOC / EDA Funded
4 Yr
Program Duration
Clean Energy
Workforce Dev
Visit steps4growth.com →
Institutional Expertise

What It Takes to Work with Higher Education.

University and grant-funded projects don't work like commercial engagements. They require a different operating model — and we built one.

🏛
IT Department Partnership
Both projects required sustained, detailed coordination with NC A&T's IT departments — navigating university hosting policies, security reviews, domain configuration, and system integration requirements that differ significantly from the commercial web world.
📋
Grant Compliance & Federal Reporting
Federal grant funding comes with documentation and compliance obligations. We structured our work to align with grant requirements from the Department of Commerce's EDA Good Jobs Challenge — ensuring deliverables could be properly reported and audited.
🔄
Ongoing Support & Custom Billing
University projects don't end at launch. We built custom billing arrangements for each client to cover ongoing website maintenance, technical support, accessibility audits, staff training, and content updates — structured to fit within grant funding cycles and university procurement processes.
What We Delivered

Both Projects, Done Right.

Grads-4C — Full Website Redesign Complete redesign of grads4c.ncat.edu — modern, accessible, university-compliant, with training and events infrastructure built in
LMS Setup & Configuration Learning Management System setup for Grads-4C — supporting training programs, symposium registration, and member workflows
STEPs4GROWTH — Federal-Scale Web Presence Designed and built steps4growth.com for a $23.7M DOC / EDA Good Jobs Challenge initiative — credible, compliant, and built to serve program participants statewide
Accessibility & Compliance Both sites built to WCAG accessibility standards and aligned with university and federal grant compliance requirements throughout
IT Coordination & Institutional Integration Deep partnership with NC A&T's IT departments across both projects — navigating university infrastructure, security, and hosting requirements
Ongoing Support & Training Custom retainer agreements covering maintenance, support, accessibility, and staff training — structured around university grant cycles and procurement processes
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