This post is part of the Meet the ETCL Team series, which introduces the wonderful people who work in the lab and who have worked with us in the past.
Derek is the lab’s self-described “jack of all trades.” He helps run and organize DHSI and its various events, takes care of all sorts of office related tasks including tech support, maintains and updates the ETCL website, and helps with 3D printing projects, an example being an interactive display created for UVic’s FrankenWeek.
Derek redesigned the ETCL website last year, and is currently working on redesigning the DHSI website, updating the overall look, improving the user interface and moving it over to a content management system for ease of use. He has really enjoyed this opportunity as it allowed him to take some of what he has recently learnt in UVic Computer Science classes and apply it, while also learning and gaining hands on experience with CSS, web design and content management systems. He got started working in the ETCL by volunteering at DHSI, which led to working a few hours a week in the lab about four years ago, when it was still located in a renovated hallway in the basement of the Clearihue building. He now works here full time during the summer and part time during the school year.
When he’s not working in the lab, Derek spends most of his studying—he’s a third-year student pursuing a degree in computer science, with an interest in software engineering. In his time off, when he gets a chance, he likes creating music, snowboarding, and camping.