Career
Introduction
I am a software engineer for Texas A&M Transportation Institute with 18 years of experience providing websites and web applications for the public and private sector. I have a bachelor's degree in fine arts from Angelo State University and have been a public speaker on technical subjects since 2015. In my current role I work with engineers and researchers to save time, lives, and resources by developing custom technology solutions for transportation research grants.
I’ve developed for more than 1,400 high-traffic websites and applications for public and private sector clients. In my freelance work I meet with clients, discuss their problems, requirements, and limitations, and we come up with a solution that meets their needs while being mindful of its impact on the long term cost of ownership of their web technology. I am happiest when my work is saving people a significant amount of time or makes their work and lives easier.
For frameworks I primarily use Laravel and React and am comfortable picking up new JavaScript and PHP frameworks. I have experience modernizing PHP and JavaScript code and am able to develop with or without frameworks depending on a project’s needs due to a thorough understanding of the languages. I spend most of my time developing and implementing application features and communicating with clients to ensure these solutions meet their needs. I also have experience with web design and CSS frameworks and have a BFA in graphic design, and although my most valuable work typically comes from producing features I am also responsible for their appearance.
Skills
| Languages | PHP, SQL, JavaScript, TypeScript, HTML, CSS, Bash, Python, C# (I helped with a VR game in Unity) |
| Frameworks | Laravel, Vue |
| Libraries | React, Material UI, Inertia, Leaflet, Playwright, Jest, Pest, PHPUnit |
| Databases | SQL Server, MySQL, SQLite |
| Tools | Visual Studio Code, Docker, git, composer, npm, wp-cli |
| Operating Systems | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Practices | PRs, CI/CD, testing, accessibility, documentation, OOP, SEO |
| Platforms | Azure, AWS, GCP, GitHub, Google Analytics, WP Engine |
| Web Servers | Nginx, Apache |
| JavaScript Runtimes | NodeJS |
| Content Management Systems | WordPress, Drupal, Joomla |
Accomplishments
In 2023 I developed a process for creating factsheets for every county in Texas using a data set, a NodeJS command line application I wrote, and Adobe InDesign in a way that only takes an hour to update across 5 different templates. In 2025 I added a feature to the NodeJS application to generate bar charts for each document. You can read about it here: Document Automation with Adobe InDesign.
In 2022 I refactored the data import and certification processes for an Internet of Things sensor data application to reduce runtimes from 4 hours to 5 minutes and wrote a database connection circuit breaker process in PHP to recover from transient connection issues during high-throughput operations which trigger load balancing.
In 2021 I rebuilt an in-house Ruby on Rails workstation ordering application in PHP for WordPress which launched that Fall. This application provides a manageable, authenticated storefront for the College of Liberal Arts’ faculty and staff workstation ordering program.
In 2020 I developed a custom WordPress theme based on the Genesis framework for Texas A&M AgriLife’s News website (https://agrilifetoday.tamu.edu/) and launched it that year.
In 2016 I developed and implemented a continuous deployment workflow for all of AgriLife’s custom WordPress plugins and themes to deploy to an array of single and multisite installations totaling 1,000+ sites, 3,000+ users, and 100,000+ unique monthly visits.
Public Speaking
Document Automation with Adobe InDesign
• 2025 • Texas A&M Technology Summit • Frisco, Texas
Strategies for Resilient Web Applications and Websites
Slides (PDF) • 2022 • Texas A&M Technology Summit • Online
Streamline Building, Deploying, and Maintaining Your (Higher-Ed) Websites with WordPress!
Slides (PDF) • 2019 • Texas A&M Technology Summit • Moody Gardens Convention Center, Corpus Christi, Texas
Continuous Deployment from GitHub to WP Engine
Slides (PDF) • 2017 • Texas A&M Technology Summit • Moody Gardens Convention Center, Corpus Christi, Texas
Open Source
@zw/remarklet
Remarklet adds visual editing capabilities to any web page. This makes modifying and commenting on them remarkably easy, even on touchscreens! Check out the CodePen demo.npm install @zw/remarklet
thoughtful-web/activation-requirements-wp
A PHP library for WordPress to apply activation requirements as a configuration file.composer require thoughtful-web/activation-requirements-wp
thoughtful-web/settings-page-wp
A PHP library for WordPress to declare settings pages as configuration files. Supports multiple field types which connect to individual options table entries.composer require thoughtful-web/settings-page-wp
List Item Filter
A WordPress plugin which provides a text search box with auto suggestions. Regrettably I have not kept up with updates to this plugin’s compatibility with WordPress releases or PHP versions.
Education
Angelo State University / Bachelor of Fine Arts
JUNE 2004 – DECEMBER 2008; SAN ANGELO, TEXAS
My coursework focused on graphic design and typography. I was a member of the Honors program and as part of my coursework I created a plan and presentation booth for a proposal to reevaluate and redesign the university’s website to have an audience-based approach to its design and organization.
Certification
Cyber Secure Coder ~ December 2023
"Earners of the CertNexus Cyber Secure Coder (CSC) certification are skilled software developers, testers, and architects who have the ability to design and develop a variety of applications for various platforms, analyze security concerns outside of specific languages and platforms, use a number of testing and analysis tools, and mitigate against common threats to data systems." - CertNexus
CertNexus Credential ID 2022003327
ITIL® Foundation Level ~ October 2021
PeopleCert Credential ID GR671329641ZW • Look up credential • Visit Site
October 2021
Experience
Texas A&M Transportation Institute
November 2021 – present • Software Engineer III
I work in the Communication division to create web applications and provide other technology solutions for transportation research grants. I meet with division heads, principal investigators, researchers, and project managers to discuss goals, requirements, limitations, estimates, and provide progress updates.
I am responsible for development, deployment, and maintenance of the applications and sites I work on which are hosted on Azure, AWS, or WP Engine. I also work with researchers to implement their statistical calculations into application code or refactor their SQL to work more efficiently when driven by the application. I manage student technicians who contribute to my projects and previously managed a full-time employee.
To date, I have created or developed 12 different applications related to research grants and assisted with several internal websites. During this work I created ETL data pipelines, database migrations, a machine learning model trained on user inputs, and a rail safety factsheet generation process using Adobe InDesign. I also helped establish a data-sharing program with a Federal agency.
Freelance WordPress Developer
October 2011 – March 2023 • Owner
I provided development, support, and consultation for several local businesses. My last client whom I worked with for more than a year was a real estate agency with a WordPress website. I refactored their custom CRM workflow to improve performance, security, and reliability, and then added unit tests to expedite testing this and future modifications. I also implemented version control, SSH push deployment, custom AJAX driven search pages, and performance optimizations.
Texas A&M College of Liberal Arts Dean’s Office
November 2020 – November 2021 • Software Applications Developer II
I was the Lead Web Applications Developer for the Dean’s Office at the College of Liberal Arts. I completely rebuilt a critical self-hosted Ruby on Rails and Kubernetes application using PHP and WordPress to remove obstacles to its management and maintenance. I also moved their WordPress multisite network from self-hosted Kubernetes to WP Engine, performed security upgrades, implemented Active Directory authentication for WordPress users, and created and contributed to standard operating procedures for website governance.
Texas A&M AgriLife Communications
April 2015 – November 2020 • Software Applications Developer II
I was the lead developer for building, deploying, and maintaining in-house WordPress plugins and responsive themes in a way that minimized production cycles and was intuitive to content owners. I consulted with clients to scope work and create project plans. I was responsible for bringing our plugins and themes to meet accessibility and privacy regulations. I evaluated new technologies to implement into our workflow and gained experience working independently, remotely, and in an Agile environment. I established a continuous deployment and release pipeline for our repositories with automated tests and an average 7 minute lead time. I created performant, responsive, and branded themes used by agrilifetoday.tamu.edu, aglifesciences.tamu.edu, agrilife.tamu.edu, and more than a thousand other sites with 100,000 average monthly visits. I developed shell scripts to perform network-wide analysis and documentation tasks. My most advanced WordPress plugin while there helped our e-learning unit create, manage, and display a searchable collection of publications. github.com/agrilife/agrilife-learn-epubs.
Naked Lime Marketing
March 2009 – April 2015 • Web Developer
I provided web solutions for clients in the automotive industry that drove leads and helped them stay competitive online. I advised management on a timeline and technology budget to fulfill client requirements and wrote contracts upon approval. I was responsible for designing, developing, and implementing new features and themes within the constraints of the in-house content management system. I Implemented and debugged site performance issues and third party features. I was rewarded for creating an inventory listing enhancement that adds individualized price, incentive, and third party data. This saved a contract with a large dealership group. I developed processes for implementing Google Maps and Analytics, created a feature to attach vehicle-specific information to customer leads, and implemented email campaign landing pages with lead-specific data.
Videos
Continuous Deployment and Release of WordPress Themes and Plugins (2017)
Publications
"Continuous Deployment with Codeship and WP Engine" https://goweb.tamu.edu/continuous-deployment-with-codeship-and-wp-engine/
Volunteer Work
Halloween Hackathon Event Instructor
October 2013 • Binary Space • Bryan, Texas
Webmaster
January 2011 – January 2013 • Living Hope Baptist Church • Bryan, Texas