Carlana.net

Employment

Spotlight PA (2019–Present)

I am the Technology Director for Spotlight PA. In this role, I am directly responsible for every aspect of Spotlight PA's online presence. Spotlight PA is a non-profit newsroom dedicated to providing nonpartisan investigative journalism about Pennsylvania government and urgent issues to media distribution partners across the state. Under my technical leadership, we have gone from not having any online presence to having hundreds of thousands of monthly unique visitors on our own site plus several times more on our partner sites; I created a portal for distributing content to partners statewide; we successfully launched multiple ongoing newsletters; we opened a regional branch in State College, PA; and Spotlight PA has attracted thousands of individual small donors in addition to other funding sources.

University of Maryland (Fall 2022)

I taught JOUR 352: Interactive Design & Development as an adjunct instructor at the University of Maryland. In this role, I introduced aspiring journalists to the basics of web design and online publishing.

Tribune Publishing (2017–2019)

As a Newsroom Product Engineer for Tribune Publishing at The Baltimore Sun, I was responsible for full stack web development at The Sun. I reduced AWS costs for The Sun by nearly half, improved security, built continuous integration and deployment pipelines, instituted code review, modernized existing web projects, and launched new sites.

Ad Hoc (2016–2017)

At Ad Hoc LLC, I was a Senior Software Engineer. Ad Hoc is a remote-based contractor specializing in bringing industry best practices to government web services. For Vets.gov, I built out an API in Ruby on Rails that connected to legacy backend systems at the Department of Veterans Affairs to allow veterans to monitor their claim status, and for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services I transitioned a Node Express application and related services to a modern continuous integration/continuous deployment system using Jenkins and Amazon Web Services.

PBS Digital (2015–2016)

At PBS Digital, I was the tech lead for the Web Services group. The Web Services group is the team at PBS dedicated to helping outside partners like local stations and television producers create, maintain, and extend their web presence. In this role, I oversaw the work of an outsourced team in Romania (including an on-site visit to Transylvania), advised my product manager in technical decisions, and assisted onshore development. Major accomplishments include upgrading our in-house CMS (Bento), assisting in the relaunch of PBS.org with a membership video option, and training junior developers.

Atlantic Media Company, Developer (2013–2015)

At The Atlantic, I helped the company transition away from a PHP-based front end with a Movable Type backend to a CMS and front end powered by Django. Major projects on which I was a key member include the relaunch of The Atlantic Wire as The Wire, the relaunch of The Atlantic Cities as CityLab, the relaunch of Atlantic Events as AtlanticLIVE, and the integration of a registration system for magazine subscription management on TheAtlantic.com and the iOS app.

Chaminade University, Adjunct Instructor (2010–2013)

As an adjunct instructor for Chaminade University I was solely responsible for designing, implementing, and managing courses that fulfill the criteria listed in Chaminade's course catalogue. Courses taught:

  • Critical Thinking (PH103). Main Campus: Fall 2010, Spring 2013. Tripler Army Medical Center: Fall 2012.

  • Ethics (PH105). Main Campus: Spring 2011. Tripler Army Medical Center: Summer 2011. Online: Summer 2011, Winter 2011, Spring 2012.

  • Introduction to Philosophy (PH100). Main Campus: Fall 2011, Fall 2012. Schofield Base: Fall 2012. Online: Spring 2011, Summer 2011, Spring 2013.

University of Hawaiʻi Mānoa, Instructor (2008–2011)

As a graduate instructor for UH Mānoa, I was solely responsible for designing, implementing, and managing courses that fulfill the criteria listed in the university's course catalogue. Courses taught:

  • Introduction to Deductive Logic (PHIL 110). Spring 2008.

  • Introduction to Inductive Logic (PHIL 111). Spring 2009.

  • Introduction to Philosophy: Survey of Problems (PHIL 100). Fall 2009, Spring 2010, Summer 2010.

  • Introduction to Philosophy: Morals and Society (PHIL 101). Summer 2011.

Freelance Translator (2009, 2010, 2012)

I have on various occasions been employed to translate philosophical works from Japanese into English. Works professionally translated:

University of Hawaiʻi Mānoa, Graduate Teaching Assistant (2007–2008)

As a graduate teaching assistant for UH Mānoa, I assisted in the implementation and management of courses under the control of senior faculty. Responsibilities included grading and teaching break out sessions independently. Courses assisted:

  • Introduction to Deductive Logic (PHIL 110). Fall 2007.

  • Introduction to Inductive Logic (PHIL 111). Fall 2008.

SuperGeeks, Macintosh Repair Specialist (2007)

Kaplan, GRE Test Prep Instructor (2006–2007)

JET Programme, Assistant Language Teacher (2004–2006)

English Instructor. Fukuoka Senior High School and Takaoka School for the Hearing Impaired.

NASA SC Space Grant internship (2002, 2003)

Received a stipend to study the creation and application of parallel computing networks using commodity parts (summers of 2002 and 2003).

Work/Study Abroad

  • Summer 2008, Advanced Japanese studies at the Inter-University Center, Yokohama, Japan.

  • 2004–2006, Assistant Language Teacher in the JET Programme for the Toyama Prefecture Board of Education, Takaoka, Japan.

  • Fall 2002, Japanese language, Japanese art history, and Sumi-e painting at Kansai Gaidai University, Hirakata, Japan.