Avalon Team
The development process for Avalon is being managed with a Scrum agile framework. Team members from Indiana University and Northwestern University function as a single Scrum team.
Adam Arling
Developer, Northwestern University
Carolyn Caizzi
Co-Project Director, Northwestern University
Jon Cameron
Product Owner, Indiana University
As one of Avalon’s Product Owners, Jon works with the developers to represent the needs of Avalon users. As Digital Media Service Manager for the Indiana University Libraries, he's the public face of IU’s multiple instances of the Avalon Media System, providing training, documentation and guidance for a growing user base of collection holders. He also works in various capacities on IU’s Media Digitization and Preservation Initiative.
Chris Colvard
Lead Developer, Indiana University
As a developer for the Avalon Media System, Chris enjoys learning new technologies and being part of active open source communities. Previously, he worked on Variations leading to its being open sourced with over a dozen institutions adopting the system. Chris graduated from DePauw University and has worked for the Digital Library Program since 2006.
Phuong Dinh
Programmer/Analyst, Indiana University
As a Programmer/Analyst, Phuong works on the Avalon Media System stack from the front end to the back end. He graduated from Illinois Wesleyan University and is also pursuing a Master of Science degree in Computer Science in his spare time. We are thrilled to welcome Phuong back to the team.
Jon Dunn
Co-Project Director, Indiana University
Jon is responsible for overall project direction and management, as well as coordinating the involvement of the project’s partners and advisors. He works at Indiana University Bloomington as Assistant Dean for Library Technologies, where he oversees information technology development and operations for the IU Bloomington Libraries. Jon has worked at IU since 1994 and has been involved with a number of music, audio, and video related digital library efforts, including development of the open source Variations digital music library system, and he is a member of the planning team for IU's Media Digitization and Preservation Initiative. He is also a member of the Open Repositories Steering Committee, Fedora Leadership Group, and Samvera Steering Group, and he co-chairs the International Image Interoperability Initiative (IIIF) A/V Technical Specification Group.
Julie Hardesty
Metadata Specialist, Indiana University
Julie helps develop descriptive, structural, and technical metadata standards for the Avalon Media System. She is the Metadata Analyst/Librarian for the Digital Library Program at Indiana University where she manages metadata creation and use for digital library services and projects.
Brian Keese
Programmer/Analyst, Indiana University
Brian joined the Avalon team just as version 3.0 was being released and was proud to share in the glory. Since then he has been working avidly to catch up on the various technologies employed in the system and to contribute however possible. Brian has a Bachelor’s of Science in Anthropology from Tulane University and a Master’s of Science in Computer Science from Indiana University. He spent the first years of his career writing logistics software for the U.S. government and is pleased to be doing just about anything else. When not coding, he is mostly working on his house and dreaming of his next adventurous vacation.
Michael B. Klein
Lead Developer, Northwestern University
As the lead developer on the Northwestern side of the project, Michael enjoys the challenge of helping to craft elegant solutions to complex problems of storing, processing, and delivering audiovisual materials. His previous experience in digital libraries includes positions at Stanford University, Oregon State University, and the Boston Public Library. Before venturing into the library world, he spent 15 years as a contract software developer for ExxonMobil and the U.S. Census Bureau. He holds a Bachelor of Music from the Catholic University of America, as well as a Master of Science in Library and Information Science from Simmons College.
David Schober
Digital Initatives Project Manager, Product Owner for Avalon, Northwestern University
David has over 10 years of experience managing different types of digital projects for non-profit organizations. While at Poetry Foundation, one of his many projects was to implement a digital asset management system for their photos. At the AAP, David managed the re-launch of aapublications.org and worked with design and development teams on both coasts to implement new features on several websites and mobile apps. David also has prior experience at Northwestern University as the Assistant Director of Stewardship and Donor Relations at Feinberg School of Medicine.
Maria Whitaker
Head, Digital Media Software Development, Scrum Master, Indiana University
Maria manages the IU Avalon development team and acts as the Avalon Scrum Master. Before joining the Avalon team, her career in software development encompassed systems for research and business administration, including collaboration with other universities in the Kuali open source space. She holds a Master’s of Science degree in Computer Science from Indiana University and has been with IU since 2005.
Dananji Withana
Developer, Indiana University
Jennifer Young
Metadata Specialist, Northwestern University
As a metadata expert for the Avalon Media System, Jennifer works with Julie to make decisions regarding all aspects of metadata. She is the Metadata Coordinator in the Repository & Digital Curation workgroup at Northwestern University managing the creation of metadata for NU’s digital repositories.
Former Team Members:
Stu Baker
Co-Project Director, Northwestern University
Debs Cane
Repository Community Manager, Northwestern University
Steve DiDomenico
SME/Consultant, Northwestern University
Stefan Elnabli
Audiovisual Media Specialist, Northwestern University
Ying Feng
Senior Programmer/ Analyst, Indiana University
Kevin Flick
Project Assistant, Indiana University
Adam Hallett
Programmer/Analyst, Northwestern University
Leah Lee
Programmer/Analyst, Indiana University
Brianna Marshall
Project Assistant, Indiana University
Karen Miller
Metadata Specialist, Northwestern University
Mark Notess
Product Owner, Indiana University
Cynthia Ramlo
Lead User Experience Designer, Indiana University
Carrick Rogers
Senior Developer, Northwestern University
Nathan Rogers
Programmer/Analyst, Indiana University
Ariadne Rehbein
Project Assistant, Indiana University
Julie Rudder
Product Owner, Northwestern University
Shelby Silvernell
QA Tester, Northwestern University
Ryan Steans
Project/Community Manager for Avalon, Northwestern University
Claire Stewart
Co-Project Director, Northwestern University
Chris Syversen
Programmer, Northwestern University
Evviva Weinraub
Project Director, Northwestern University
Andrea Zielke
Project Assistant, Northwestern University