Six new team members joined us between January and April. Learn more about their positions and why they are excited to join LSA Technology Services. Welcome Mixie, Patrick, Liz, Matt, Angela, and Sylvia!
Mixie Clerard, Web Designer
Before joining LSA Technology Services, Mixie earned her Bachelor's degree in Psychology from Wayne State University. She also built a background in web design and development, drawing on her experiences from coding boot camps. Mixie has mastered HTML/CSS, JavaScript, and frameworks like React and Angular. Her experience also includes working with Python, PHP, WordPress, and e-commerce platforms such as Wix and Shopify.
Mixie is excited to dive into her role as a Web Designer Associate, bringing faculty and research projects to life through WordPress. She will be building new sites from the ground up, sprucing up older ones, and collaborating with an amazing group of people. Mixie is especially looking forward to getting to the point where she can help troubleshoot WordPress issues for others and offer tips and tricks during open lab sessions.
She is most excited about the chance to merge her tech skills with her customer service experience in an environment that's all about education and research. Mixie looks forward to working closely with faculty and researchers to enhance their online presence and communication through effective web design. She’s also eager to further develop her skills in WordPress and be a part of a collaborative and talented team!
Patrick Franklin, Manager
Patrick studied part-time at LSA after high school while working full-time for a local mortgage company doing tech and data support. He then spent eight years at the Office of University Development (OUD) working on data and reporting. His department helped lead the formation of the new data structures and processes that are still mostly in use today. Patrick also helped ITS market the first Tableau server to the campus audience. From OUD, he joined the Information Quest team in ITS for six years, creating metrics for the Regents, the President and cabinet, the Deans, and unit and financial administrators. He created new training for BusinessObjects and Tableau, and modernized the BusinessObjects version and the MReports interface.
Patrick will be managing part of the Web and Application Development Services team that comprises the .NET developers and the Business Intelligence Analysts. The team supports a variety of applications used by college operations including the Advising Application, Group Scheduler, Faculty Lifecycle app, App Manager, MRS, and many more.
He's excited to work with such a talented and dedicated team and is currently trying to learn as much as possible from them! He's also interested in learning more about college operations. The team’s first big initiative is to analyze our various applications and how we work to select a new standard for applications moving forward. They hope this will help better integrate parts of the system people need to access.
Liz Larin, AV Technician
With a rich and diverse career in the music industry, Liz has released 15 albums under various project names. As a versatile performer, she creates and performs original music as a vocalist, guitarist, and bassist, with loops, backing tracks, and video projection, all while managing a portable AV system from a midi pedal board.
After her time at Atlantic Records, she worked for eight years in Los Angeles for CAA, Orion Films, and Maverick (Madonna's label) and with people such as Michael Jackson, Snoop Dogg, and Dr. Dre. As a music producer and composer, Liz enjoys working out of her studio, running her label and publishing company, and keeping up with intellectual property law, especially issues around AI.
Liz is joining LSA Technology Services as an audiovisual technician. She will be focusing on enhancing video conferencing experiences and orchestrating seamless live events.
Most of all, Liz is interested in how technology can improve the world. She is excited to support higher education for all and work with a great team. Additionally, Liz is eager to further delve into AI, AR, and VR research to stay at the forefront of technological innovation.
Matt Ley, Desktop Support Specialist
Matt is a recent graduate from Eastern Michigan University, earning his Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science. He also brings experience gained working as a Desktop Support contractor for Michigan Medicine.
He joins LSA Technology Services in a Desktop Support role. Matt will be assisting faculty and staff for Chemistry, Earth, Biophysics, and the Science Learning Center with their hardware and software needs. He will also be partnering with the departments' Principal Investigators to support computational and instrumentation work within research labs.
Angela Natalie Martin, Asset Manager & Facilities Coordinator
Angela joins us after working in Michigan Medicine for five years. She spent time on both the Radiology and Brain Tumor Neurosurgery administrative teams. However, she was recently told that she fit the modern term 'multipotentialite' marvelously, so she was interested in the position at LSA Technology Services that required a variety of skills and expertise.
As the Asset Manager and Facilities Coordinator within LSA Technology Services, Angela has enjoyed the past three months in this multifaceted role. Her primary responsibilities are to effectively sort and distribute incoming shipments, handle equipment returns, and support inventory management for all of the classroom equipment used in LSA.
Angela has been thoroughly enjoying the facilitating and problem-solving aspects of her role so far!
Sylvia Reeves, Technology Experience Specialist
Prior to coming to LSA Technology Services, Sylvia worked mostly in retail environments. She also went to school at Washtenaw Community College and Eastern Michigan University for Technology Management.
Sylvia joins us as a Technology Experience Specialist. She will be helping troubleshoot a variety of tech-related issues, as well as assisting in the circulation of loan equipment. The core part of her job will be helping to ensure that all systems run smoothly to enable LSA staff and students to best achieve their goals. She will also ensure that issues coming in are directed to the correct teams.
Sylvia is most excited about being in an environment surrounded by passionate, driven, and dedicated people who are all working towards a shared goal! Sylvia thinks her team is amazing, and she is thrilled to be part of such an incredible group of people.
