alumni_lookup

Feature 5: Discussion Boards

⚠️ PLANNING DOCUMENT - This describes features that are NOT YET IMPLEMENTED.

Overview

Discussion boards build belonging and enable ongoing peer support. They provide a space for Champions to share, ask questions, and collaborate.

Aligns with Needs & Solutions “housing forum,” “recommendations,” and community Q&A.

Board Structure

Hierarchy

National Boards (visible to all Champions)
├── General Discussion
├── Job Postings
├── Mentorship Q&A
└── Digital Ambassador Story Leads

Regional Boards (auto-generated per region)
├── [Region Name] General
├── [Region Name] Events
└── [Region Name] Announcements

Affinity Boards (Phase 2 - not scoped by region)
├── College-specific
├── Major-specific
├── Industry-specific
├── Athletics
└── Music Ensembles

National Boards

Regional Boards

Auto-generated for each region
Moderated by: Region CLC + Engagement Team
Includes:
- General discussion
- Local events
- Announcements (CLC-pinned)

Affinity Boards (Phase 2)

College-based (e.g., “College of Business”)
Major-based (e.g., “Music Business”)
Industry-based (e.g., “Healthcare Professionals”)
Athletics (e.g., “Former Athletes”)
Music Ensembles (e.g., “Orchestra Alumni”)

Core Functions

For All Champions

Function	Description
Create Post	Start a new discussion thread
Comment/Reply	Respond to existing posts
Tag	Add region/affinity/industry tags
Upload	Attach photos or PDFs
@Mention	Tag other Champions
React	Like, helpful, celebrate (emoji reactions)
Report	Flag inappropriate content

Post Creation

Field	Required	Notes
Title	Yes	Max 150 chars
Body	Yes	Rich text, max 5000 chars
Tags	No	Region, affinity, topic
Attachments	No	Images, PDFs (max 5MB each)
Board	Yes	Select destination board

For CLCs Only

Function	Description
Pin Post	Sticky important announcements
Lock Thread	Prevent further replies
Move Post	Move to different board
Hide Post	Remove from public view (pending review)

For Engagement Team

Function	Description
All CLC functions	Plus:
Delete Post	Permanently remove
Ban User	Temporarily or permanently restrict posting
Create Board	Add new affinity or special boards

Post Display

Thread View

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ [Pin Icon] Post Title                            [Date]     │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ [Photo] Author Name • Region • Role Badge                   │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Post body content...                                        │
│                                                             │
│ [Image attachment]                                          │
│                                                             │
│ Tags: #Nashville #Events                                    │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 👍 12  💡 5  🎉 3     [Reply] [Share] [Report]              │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Comments (8)                                                │
│ ├── Comment 1...                                            │
│ │   └── Reply to comment 1...                               │
│ └── Comment 2...                                            │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Board List View

Post title
Author thumbnail + name
Comment count
Last activity time
Tags
Pinned posts at top

Notifications

Champions receive notifications for:

Replies to their posts
@Mentions
New posts in boards they follow
Pinned announcements in their region

Notification Preferences

In-app only
Email digest (daily/weekly)
Email immediately
Off

Search Within Boards

Filter	Description
Keywords	Full-text search
Author	Filter by poster
Board	Specific board
Tags	Region, affinity, topic
Date Range	Posted within timeframe
Has Attachment	Posts with files

Moderation

Content Guidelines

Professional and respectful
No spam or self-promotion (unless in Job Postings)
No personal attacks
Relevant to board topic

Moderation Workflow

┌─────────────┐     ┌─────────────┐     ┌─────────────┐
│  Reported   │ ──► │ CLC Review  │ ──► │   Resolved  │
└─────────────┘     └─────────────┘     └─────────────┘
                           │
                           ▼ (escalate)
                    ┌─────────────┐
                    │ Engagement  │
                    │ Team Review │
                    └─────────────┘

Moderation Actions

Warning - Message to user about guidelines
Hide - Remove post from public, user can appeal
Delete - Permanent removal
Mute - Temporarily prevent posting (1 day, 7 days, 30 days)
Ban - Permanent posting restriction

Required Decisions

Private DMs in boards? - Probably not; separate messaging feature
Housing/Roommate board? - Not initially; develop if organic demand
Anonymous posting? - Recommend against for accountability
Post edit time limit? - Allow edits for X minutes after posting?

Technical Notes

Database Schema Concepts

# Board
- name
- board_type (national, regional, affinity)
- region_id (null for national/affinity)
- affinity_id (null for national/regional)
- moderated_by_clc (boolean)

# Post
- board_id
- champion_id
- title
- body
- pinned (boolean)
- locked (boolean)
- hidden (boolean)
- created_at
- updated_at

# Comment
- post_id
- champion_id
- parent_comment_id (for threading)
- body
- hidden (boolean)

# Reaction
- post_id or comment_id
- champion_id
- reaction_type (like, helpful, celebrate)

06-MESSAGING.md - Direct messaging (separate from boards)
07-ADMIN-TOOLS.md - Moderation tools
02-PROFILE-MANAGEMENT.md - Author display info