ASPI Website — Intern Content & SEO Plan

Purpose: Step-by-step guide for interns adding categories, tags, and topic terms to blog posts, pages, and publications on the WordPress staging site.

Staging site: https://appalachia-spi.org
Stack: WordPress + Astra Pro + Spectra blocks + Rank Math
Reference files in this repo: migration/blog_import.csv, migration/publications_import.csv, wordpress_schema.md, docs/staging/ASPI_Staging_TODO.md

Last updated: June 2026

Intern project overview (read first)

What ASPI is

Appalachia – Science in the Public Interest (ASPI) is a nonprofit based in Central Appalachia. Since 1977, ASPI has put science and appropriate technology to work for the region — in food systems, energy, sustainable living, and culture & oral history. The organization runs demonstration sites, workshops, service learning, oral history projects, and a long-running technical paper series that communities, educators, and partners still use today.

Live legacy site: https://www.appalachia-spi.org

Staging site (your workspace): https://appalachia-spi.org

What this website project is

ASPI is moving from an older Weebly site to WordPress (theme: Astra Pro, layouts: Spectra, SEO: Rank Math). The staging site already has most content imported:

• 31 pages (About, Explore, Programs, Get Involved, demonstration sites, etc.)
• 74 blog posts (Simple Living Blog)
• 72 publications (technical papers in the Resource Library)

Your work is part of launch preparation: making content easier to find, browse, and understand — not redesigning the whole site.

Why this work is useful and needed

Without this pass, the site “works” but content is harder to find — especially 72+ publications and years of blog posts migrated from the old site.

What you will do (and what to leave alone)

You will:

• Label content using the plan and Google Sheet tracker (intern_tracking_sheet.csv).
• On blog posts: assign one category, several tags, and Rank Math fields.
• On publications: assign Topic, optional tags, title-based slug, and Rank Math fields.
• On pages: set Rank Math focus keyword and meta description (pages do not use WordPress tags).
• On images (Phase 6): add alt text, propose descriptive filenames, audit P1 pages, then media library.

Do not change unless explicitly assigned:

• Spectra layout or page design
• Body copy, images in the main content, or URLs/slugs (except publication slugs per Phase 4)
• Navigation menus, plugins, or site settings

When in doubt, add a note in the tracker Notes column or check Needs Supervisor Review.

Where to do your work

Phase 1 (WordPress setup) is complete. You may start Phases 2–5 as assigned.

Current staging reality

Current policy: apply Topic directly on Publications now. On Posts, apply Topic only if a Topic field is visible; otherwise keep Topic in the tracker as a planned target.

How to use this document

1. Read Intern project overview and Current staging reality below.
2. Read Where to click in WordPress before editing anything.
3. Read Taxonomy rules (below) once before you start.
4. Work in Phase order: begin with pages → posts → publications → SEO checks.
5. Use the tables in each section as your checklist, or the shared Google Sheet / CSV tracker
6. When unsure, read the post/page first, then pick the closest match. Ask your supervisor rather than inventing new category names.
7. Do not change URLs, publish dates, Spectra layouts, or body content unless assigned separately.

New intern: first 30 minutes checklist

1. Log in to WordPress staging and open one sample Page, Post, and Publication.
2. Confirm where fields appear: Categories/Tags (Posts), Topic (Publications), Rank Math (all assigned items).
3. Open Content & SEO Tracker Google Sheet, assign yourself 5 starter items, and set Assigned to.
4. Complete 1 item from each content type and ask supervisor to verify before bulk work.
5. Confirm your tag format matches the standard below before creating/editing tags.

Taxonomy rules (read first)

ASPI uses three related but different labeling systems:

Topic terms (use exact slugs)

Topic assignment rubric (quick intern rule)

Use this when a publication could fit multiple topics.

1. Choose one primary Topic (the dominant subject, roughly 70%+ of intent).
2. Capture secondary themes with Tags, not extra Topics.
3. Propose a new Topic only if 5-8+ publications consistently do not fit the existing four.
4. If unsure, pick the closest Topic below and note it for supervisor review.

Recommended blog categories (create in WordPress if missing)

Note: Blog category slug sustainable-living-blog avoids conflicting with the global topic slug sustainable-living.

Tag guidelines

Tag format standard (required):

• Use lowercase, hyphenated slugs only (e.g. earth-day, rockcastle-river, notre-dame).

• No spaces, underscores, punctuation variants, or duplicate spellings.

• Do not add year variants unless historically required (earth-day, not earth-day-2026).

• Reuse existing tags whenever possible.

• Do not create new tags, categories, or topics without supervisor approval.

• Use lowercase, hyphenated slugs (e.g. earth-day, rockcastle-river, notre-dame).

• Reuse tags across posts — do not create earth-day-2024 and earth-day-2025 separately; use earth-day.

• Include place tags when relevant: rockcastle-river, mount-vernon, appalachia, kentucky.

• Include program tags when relevant: grow-appalachia, service-learning, oral-history, simple-lifestyle-calendar.

• Legacy Weebly categories (see content_library/manifest.json) can inform tags but should be normalized (e.g. calendar holidays → category simple-lifestyle-calendar + tag calendar).

Publications vs blog vs pages

Publications already have primary_topic and publication_type in publications_import.csv — interns mainly verify and add secondary tags.

Where to click in WordPress

Astra and Spectra control how pages look; they do not add taxonomy fields. Use the locations below.

Login and find content

1. Go to https://appalachia-spi.org/wp-admin/ and log in.
2. Left menu shortcuts:
   • Pages → About, Programs, Explore hubs, etc.
   • Posts → Simple Living Blog articles (/blog/{slug}/)
   • Publications → technical papers (if the custom post type exists; if missing, ask supervisor)
   • Posts → Categories / Posts → Tags → manage blog taxonomy lists (supervisor may prefer interns only pick existing terms)

Blog posts (Posts) — categories, tags, topic, SEO

1. Posts → All Posts → open a post.
2. In the block editor (Spectra content in the main area):
   • Right sidebar → Post tab → Categories (check one primary category).
   • Same sidebar → Tags (add 3–8; comma-separated).
   • If a Topic field appears, assign 1 topic term here or under a Topic panel.
3. Rank Math SEO (below the editor, or right sidebar → Rank Math tab – see photo below):
   • Focus Keyword — primary search phrase.
   • Edit Snippet → SEO title + meta description.
4. Featured image and Excerpt — Post sidebar (excerpt helps archives and SEO).
5. Permalink — under the title; slug should match this doc (do not change unless assigned).
6. Click Update.

If you do not see Categories/Tags: click the gear icon (top right) → Preferences → Panels → enable Categories and Tags. Or use three dots (⋮) → Preferences.

Pages — SEO only (no WordPress tags)

Pages do not show Categories or Tags unless a developer enables them. For each page in Phase 2:

1. Pages → All Pages → open the page.
2. Scroll to Rank Math SEO (or open the Rank Math sidebar tab).
3. Set Focus Keyword using the first 1–2 suggested labels from the Phase 2 table (e.g. solar-house, oral-history).
4. Set meta description (140–160 characters, plain language summary of the page).
5. Optional: Edit Snippet → custom SEO title.
6. Do not change Spectra layout blocks unless assigned a separate design task.
7. Click Update.

“Notes” in Phase 2 (e.g. “confirm permalink”) are instructions, not a WordPress field — track completion in your spreadsheet.

Publications — topic, type, tags, SEO

1. Publications → All Publications (menu name may vary).
2. Assign Topic and Publication Type (these should be available on Publications).
3. Add Tags if the publication editor includes a Tags box (same as posts).
4. Complete Rank Math fields (focus keyword + meta description); use publication title + topic in the keyword.
5. Set slug from the title (Phase 4 table) — Edit permalink under title; avoid tp1, tp2, etc.
6. Attach or verify PDF if that is a separate field (ACF or featured download).

Rank Math — where it appears

Focus keyword vs tag: Focus keyword is for Rank Math analysis and snippets; it does not create a public tag archive. For pages, the focus keyword replaces the suggested “tags” in this plan until real page taxonomies exist.

What you will not find (normal)

• No Tags/Categories on Pages (default WordPress).
• No taxonomy UI inside Spectra block settings.
• Topic field on Posts unless enabled by supervisor.
• Notes column — not a CMS field; use your tracker.

Tracking sheet (Google Sheets)

Imported into Google Sheets (two tabs):

1. intern_tracking_sheet.csv — daily work (Tracker tab, 183 rows).
2. intern_plan_instructions.csv — readable reference (Instructions tab, ~46 rows).

Tracker columns (in CSV): Done, Needs Supervisor Review, taxonomy/SEO fields, Meta description done, SEO title done, Alt text done, Assigned to, Notes. Pre-flagged rows (e.g. TP5 Spanish) have Needs Supervisor Review = TRUE.

Phase 1 — WordPress setup (complete)

Supervisor setup: Complete. Interns may begin all work phases.

• Confirm custom post type Publication exists and archive is /publications/.
• Confirm taxonomy topic is live on Publications with the four terms above (wordpress_schema.md).
• Register taxonomy publication_type with term technical-paper (all current papers).
• Create the 10 blog categories listed above.
• Import or verify all 74 blog posts and 72 publications are on staging.
• Install/confirm Rank Math is active for SEO fields.
• Confirm Rank Math meta box is enabled for Posts and Pages (Rank Math → Dashboard → Titles & Meta).
• (Optional, later) Register Topic for pages or add ACF “Primary topic” — not required for intern pass; deferred.

Intern tasks: Start Phase 2 (pages), Phase 3 (posts), and Phase 4 (publications). Use intern_plan_instructions.csv or the Google Sheet Instructions tab for quick reference.

Approval rule (all phases): interns should not create new taxonomy terms (Topics, Categories, Tags) without explicit supervisor approval.

Phase 2 — Pages (31 published on staging)

What interns do on staging today: Rank Math only (focus keyword + meta description). Use the table below; ignore WordPress Tags on pages.

Pages not yet on staging (drafts exist — complete when published)

Phase 3 — Blog posts (74)

Workflow per post: Posts → All Posts → assign 1 category → add tags → assign topic (if available) → Rank Math focus keyword + meta description (see Where to click in WordPress).

A. Simple Lifestyle Calendar (10 posts)

Category: simple-lifestyle-calendar
Topic: sustainable-living
Common tags: calendar, holidays, simple-living, seasons

B. Grow Appalachia (7 posts)

Category: grow-appalachia
Topic: food-systems
Common tags: grow-appalachia, gardening, community-gardens, appalachia

C. Nature Center & Outdoor Education (8 posts)

Category: nature-center-outdoor-education
Topic: sustainable-living
Common tags: nature-center, outdoor-education, mary-e-fritsch-nature-center

D. ASPI News & Updates (10 posts)

Category: aspi-news
Topic: usually none, or sustainable-living if about programs broadly
Common tags: aspi, organization, updates

E. Food & Gardening (7 posts)

Category: food-gardening
Topic: food-systems
Common tags: gardening, food, appalachia

F. Sustainable Living & Homesteading (9 posts)

Category: sustainable-living-blog
Topic: sustainable-living
Common tags: simple-living, homesteading, sustainable-culture

G. Seasons & Observances (13 posts)

Category: seasons-observances
Topic: varies — see column
Common tags: holiday name, season

H. Gratitude & Reflection (6 posts)

Category: gratitude-reflection
Topic: culture-oral-history or none
Common tags: gratitude, thanksgiving, reflection

I. Programs & Service Learning (1 post)

Category: programs-service-learning
Topic: culture-oral-history

J. Culture & Poetry (3 posts)

Category: culture-poetry
Topic: culture-oral-history

Phase 4 — Publications (72 technical papers)

Already in CSV: primary_topic, publication_type (= technical-paper for all).

Slug rule: The URL slug is derived from the paper title, not legacy codes like tp1 or tp57. Use the title shown in WordPress, converted to lowercase with hyphens (per archive/ASPI_URL_Rulebook_Updated.md). Example: Solar Cooker → /publications/solar-cooker/. The Slug column below is the target post_name for each item.

Intern tasks:

1. In WordPress, confirm each publication has Publication Type: Technical Paper.
2. Confirm Topic matches primary_topic in publications_import.csv.
3. Set the permalink slug to match the Slug column (from the title). Do not use tp1, tp2, etc.
4. Add 2–5 tags from the subject list below (do not replace topic).
5. If staging still uses an old tp# slug, note it for a 301 redirect to the title-based slug before launch.

Topic summary (verify counts)

Suggested secondary tags by topic

Energy (energy): solar, photovoltaics, solar-cooker, solar-water-heater, greenhouse, heating, energy-policy, buildings

Food Systems (food-systems): gardening, compost, irrigation, seeds, ginseng, aquaculture, pest-management, soil, orchards

Sustainable Living (sustainable-living): forestry, wildlife, water, waste, appropriate-technology, trails, housing, appalachia

Culture & Oral History (culture-oral-history): heritage, spirituality, oral-history

Full publication list (slug from title — add tags as you review)

Phase 5 — SEO tasks (appropriate for interns)

These tasks improve findability without changing site design. Work after taxonomy is in place.

A. Rank Math — per blog post & key pages

For each blog post and high-traffic page (Home, Explore, Publications, Blog archive, Donate, Contact):

• Focus keyword — one primary phrase (e.g. “Appalachia simple lifestyle calendar April” for April calendar post).
• Meta description — 140–160 characters, unique, includes keyword naturally, ends with clear value (not clickbait).
• SEO title — under 60 characters; include site name only if Rank Math template adds it automatically.
• Image alt text on priority posts — or complete via Phase 6 image trackers.

B. Site-wide SEO (supervisor may assign pieces)

• Blog archive in sitemap — follow docs/staging/ASPI_Staging_TODO.md: ensure /blog/ appears in page-sitemap.xml OR post-sitemap.xml.
• Internal links — from topic hub pages, link to 3–5 relevant publications and 2–3 blog posts per topic.
• Broken link check — scan blog posts for dead external links (Kentucky Proud, Visit Appalachia, etc.); note for supervisor.
• Redirect list — document legacy URLs from legacy_url column → new /blog/{slug}/ and /publications/{slug}/ (do not implement without approval).
• Human sitemap page — when /sitemap/ page launches, ensure all main sections and topic hubs are listed (draft/sitemap.html reference).

E. Additional intern-friendly SEO tasks (optional)

• Image work — see Phase 6 (intern_image_pages.csv, intern_image_content.csv).
• Internal link opportunities list — identify 2-3 relevant internal links per blog post and document in Notes for editor approval.
• Thin meta description audit — flag descriptions under ~120 chars or over ~160 chars for rewrite.
• SERP snippet quality pass — use Rank Math preview to avoid truncation and duplicate wording across similar posts.
• Accessibility-SEO overlap checks — flag missing alt text, vague link text (“click here”), and heading order issues.
• Archive page snippet consistency — verify key archive pages (/blog/, /publications/, /events/) have clear meta descriptions and SEO titles.

C. Content quality (SEO-adjacent)

• Excerpts — ensure each blog post has a manual excerpt (155 chars) if auto-excerpt is weak.
• Headings — one H1 per page (usually title); logical H2/H3 order in long posts.
• Duplicate titles — fix any two posts with identical SEO titles.
• Publication abstracts — short summary field filled for each technical paper (helps search snippets).

D. Tasks to leave for developers/supervisors

• Schema markup configuration (Organization, Article) in Rank Math
• Canonical URL decisions (/blog/ vs /explore/simple-living-blog/)
• 301 redirect implementation and go-live
• Core Web Vitals / performance
• Google Search Console setup

Phase 6 — Images (accessibility, SEO & media library)

Migrated content often has empty alt text and vague filenames (image1.jpg, unnamed-1.png, hash-like names). This hurts WCAG (screen reader users) and SEO (image search and context for crawlers).

Tracking files (import to Google Sheets or use alongside main tracker):

Regenerate: python intern/build_intern_image_audit.py

Priority order (mixed — follow this sequence)

Taxonomy/SEO phases (2–5) and image work (6) can run in parallel if different interns; otherwise finish P1 pages image pass early.

Where to click (images)

1. Media → Library (/wp-admin/upload.php)
2. Click an image → Attachment details panel:
   • Alternative Text (required for meaningful images; use "" only if decorative)
   • Title (optional; can match filename)
   • Filename / Rename — see rename rules below
3. On Pages/Posts: click image in Spectra/block editor → block settings or Media sidebar for alt text.
4. Filter tip: search migrated in Library; sort by date; look for unnamed, image, long hashes.

Alt text rules (WCAG-minded)

Filename rules (SEO + organization)

Vague patterns to flag: image, img, photo, unnamed, screenshot, random hashes, wp-image-*.

Per-image tracker columns

Done, Needs Supervisor Review, Priority, Parent title, Parent URL, Image URL, Current filename, Suggested filename, Alt text (write here), Decorative, Filename action, Alt done, Notes

Definition of done (one image row):

• Alt text entered (or confirmed decorative).
• Filename action recorded (OK as-is, Propose rename, or Renamed after approval).
• Row marked Done; supervisor clears Needs Supervisor Review for renames.

P1 pages checklist (audit every image on these URLs)

Use intern_image_pages.csv for the full P1/P2 page list and tracking columns.

Phase 6 intern tasks

• Complete P1 page image audit (all images on each page; add rows to sheet if more than one image per page).
• Complete P2 remaining pages.
• Work through P3 blog image rows in intern_image_content.csv.
• Start P4 media library: batch 50–100 attachments per session; flag orphans (unused files) in Notes for supervisor.
• Mark Alt done on main intern_tracking_sheet.csv page/post rows when all images on that item are complete.

Supervisor / dev (not intern-only)

• Approve filename rename list before bulk rename.
• Install/run media replace or redirect plugin if filenames change on heavily linked assets.
• Consider Smush/ShortPixel or compression later — out of scope for this pass.

Phase 7 — Quality checklist (before marking done)

• Every blog post has exactly one primary category.
• No more than 8 tags per blog post; no empty or duplicate tags.
• Every blog post and priority page has Rank Math meta description + focus keyword.
• All 72 publications have topic + technical-paper type (when taxonomies exist).
• Every publication slug matches its title (hyphenated), not legacy tp# codes.
• Priority pages (Home, Explore, Publications, Blog, Donate, Contact) reviewed in Rank Math.
• Topic hub pages (when live) show related publications filtered by matching topic.
• Spot-check 10 random posts in Rank Math Preview Snippet or Google Rich Results Test.
• Tracking sheet complete (Done checked only when Needs Supervisor Review is false or resolved); supervisor signs off.
• Export updated taxonomy to CSV if team uses WP All Import for backup (migration/blog_import.csv categories column can be updated for records).
• P1 page images audited (Phase 6); alt text complete or flagged.
• Blog images with content in intern_image_content.csv reviewed (or N/A documented).

Recommended priorities (if time is limited)

Future site improvements (supervisor / dev — not intern blockers)

These align with wordpress_schema.md and improve the plan long-term:

1. Topic on Posts (optional) — enable Topic field on blog posts if desired; Publications Topic is live.
2. ACF on Pages: “Primary topic” dropdown + optional “Internal tags” — then Phase 2 table maps to real fields.
3. Update publications_import.csv post_name to title-based slugs before bulk import.
4. 301 redirects: legacy /blog/*.html and /publications/papers/tp* → new URLs (build_redirects.py / redirect plugin).
5. Google Search Console + Organization schema in Rank Math at launch.
6. Resolve TP5 Spanish duplicate vs TP-5 Cordwood (en espanol).

Known exceptions and decisions log

Track non-standard cases here so interns apply rules consistently:

• TP5 Spanish (tp5-spanish) — topic still needs confirmation; likely sustainable-living. Confirm whether it is a duplicate/variant of TP-5.
• If any publication intentionally keeps a legacy slug for external dependency reasons, record that decision here with date + approver.
• If a new Topic/Category/Tag is approved, record exact name, slug, reason, and approver before interns use it.

Top 12 common mistakes (and how to avoid them)

1. Adding Tags to Pages in WordPress
   • Pages do not use WP Tags on this site. Use Rank Math focus keyword for pages instead.
2. Using more than one primary Category on blog posts
   • Use exactly one primary category per post unless supervisor approves an exception.
3. Creating one-off or duplicate tags
   • Reuse existing tags (earth-day not earth day, earthday, earth-day-2026).
4. Treating Rank Math keyword like a WordPress tag
   • Focus keyword is for SEO analysis/snippet only; it does not create archive filters.
5. Changing slugs without documenting redirects
   • If a slug changes (especially publications), add a note for a 301 redirect.
6. Using legacy tp# slugs for publications
   • Publication slugs should be title-based (e.g., solar-cooker), not tp1.
7. Assigning multiple Topics to publications
   • Pick one primary Topic; capture secondary ideas in Tags.
8. Skipping meta descriptions
   • Every priority page/post should have a unique 140-160 character meta description.
9. Editing Spectra layout blocks during SEO/taxonomy passes
   • Unless assigned, do taxonomy + SEO only; keep layout/content changes out of scope.
10. Marking items complete without QA

• Before checking Done: verify URL, category/topic/tag, focus keyword, and meta description.

11. Using the filename as alt text

• Alt should describe the image for humans, not repeat DSC00012.jpg.

12. Renaming media files without approval

• Log proposed names in Phase 6 tracker; supervisor approves before rename in WordPress.

Clarity upgrades for intern workflow (recommended)

Use these operating rules while assigning work:

• Batch by phase and content type: finish all Pages (Phase 2), then Blog (Phase 3), then Publications (Phase 4).
• Work in small daily batches: 15-25 items per intern/day with supervisor review at end of day.
• Use assignment ownership: every row in intern_tracking_sheet.csv should have an Assigned to name.
• Require a handoff note on uncertain items: if topic/category is unclear, leave a note rather than guessing.
• Run a 10-item QA sample daily: supervisor spot-checks random completed rows before interns continue.

Suggested “definition of done” per row:

• WordPress fields updated (category/topic/tags as applicable).
• Rank Math focus keyword + meta description filled; SEO title done checked when customized.
• Slug verified against plan (for publications).
• Needs Supervisor Review unchecked (or supervisor has resolved flagged row).
• Row marked Done with any exceptions documented in Notes.

Quick reference — legacy Weebly blog categories → new model

Questions? Note the post/page URL and your proposed category/tags; ask supervisor before creating new global taxonomy terms.