UX/UI Design for a NYC Exploration App
In UX Design for Empowerment, taught by Prof. Ralph Vacca, I worked on a 5 person team to create a solution to any problem of our choosing. The driving question we chose to work with was, “HMW empower students of color, disability, LGBTQ+ to understand intersectionality?” From there, we developed a targeted platform that enables college students to gain and explore new experiences while engaging with diverse locations throughout New York City. Our team created a range of initial prototypes, including various use-case scenarios, surface and interactive designs, and conducted numerous rounds of usability testing and interviews to refine the platform's functionality.
Each member of the Vnture team was greatly concerned with ensuring that the application brought value to our users. We had to narrow down our scope from the original question: “How might we empower students of color, disability, LGBTQ+ to understand intersectionality?”
After conducting interviews with Fordham students, faculty, New Yorkers, and design professionals, we decided to focus on bringing attention to at-risk historical and cultural places in New York.
We then created user flows (first on classic Post-Its, then within Figma) and designed an interactive prototype ready for usability testing.
Our findings from this step brought us to our final guiding question: “How might we create an application that promotes cultural understanding and physical activity within New York?”
After conducting a third round of interviews and usability tests, we finalized the interactive prototype and created a website for the app.
