I'm a purposeful programmer with a strong CS background and focus on web application development. I'm passionate about mentorship, open source software, and technology that teaches, connects and inspires.
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Extensive WordPress experience (plugin development, custom post/taxonomy types, theming); at home with the web frameworks Ruby on Rails, Django and Flask; familiar with PostgreSQL, MySQL, and database abstraction layers (SQLAlchemy, Active Record).
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Well-versed in modern JavaScript patterns (Node, React, Flux, Redux), common building blocks (jQuery, Underscore, d3.js) and next-generation browser capabilities (e.g. HTML5, CSS3).
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Fluent in PHP, JavaScript, Ruby, and Python; comfortable in many languages, including C++, Java, Perl, and Matlab.
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Conversant with version control systems (Git, Subversion), agile programming methods, and test-driven development.
March 2014 - Present
As part of Team I/O, I work on the WordPress.com REST API, the new WordPress.com post editor, and third-party integrations, among other projects. Since May 2015 I have been team lead of our five-person group, enabling my teammates to do their best work, as well as working as a programmer, code reviewer, project manager and overall cat herder.
June - September 2013
As a participant in GNOME's Outreach Program for Women, I removed the Post By Email functionality from WordPress core and rewrote it from the ground up as a standalone plugin. This allowed me to deepen my WordPress expertise and internalize best practices for WP development. Even more importantly, I learned the ins and outs of contributing to a large, community-maintained project. After the internship period, I am continuing to work on the next version of the plugin and provide support in the WordPress forums.
January 2012 - February 2014
I worked on a variety of client projects using Rails, WordPress, Django, and other technologies. The ever-changing nature of freelance work fulfilled my desire to be very self-directed and my love of new challenges.
February - December 2011
At Pikimal, a Pittsburgh start-up, our small development team utilized a modified agile methodology to extend and improve the beta version of the site. One of my earliest tasks at Pikimal was upgrading the codebase from Rails 2 to Rails 3; I later focused on social and gamification features to build a greater sense of community.
August 2007 - January 2011
Being a programmer at Columbia's Center for New Media Teaching and Learning required not only a wide variety of technical skills — from web development to system administration — but the ability to switch smoothly between multiple projects, budget my time to meet the frequent deadlines of an academic calendar, and communicate effectively with co-workers and faculty. Due to our small staff size and short project lifecycles, it was necessary for me to be highly self-directed, work closely with almost everyone in the office, and learn new technologies quickly.
August 2006 - July 2007
CCNMTL's New Media Associates provide multifaceted support to the department and faculty. My job called upon customer service and troubleshooting finesse, the ability to multitask and be self-managed, and technical skills that ran the gamut from expertise in web technologies to UNIX shell scripting.
June 2003 - June 2005
At Boeing-SVS, I worked on several demanding, high-profile projects. These included a multi-part system for signal processing and an internal manpower-tracking database.
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M.S. Computer Engineering, Columbia University (May 2007)
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B.S. Computer Science, University of New Mexico (May 2004), with a minor in Art Studio (Photography)