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

| Board | Purpose | Moderated By | |——-|———|————–| | General | Open discussion, community building | Engagement Team | | Job Postings | Share job opportunities | Engagement Team | | Mentorship | Q&A about mentorship program | Engagement Team | | Story Leads | Digital Ambassadors share story ideas | Engagement Team |

Regional Boards

Affinity Boards (Phase 2)


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


Notifications

Champions receive notifications for:

Notification Preferences


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

Moderation Workflow

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

Moderation Actions


Required Decisions


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)