Hello!
I'm Shawn, a Software Developer.
On this website, I showcase my projects, write about their underlying technologies, share my hobbies, and anything else I want to put out into the world. It is written with my own words and opinions and serves as a personal space for self-reflection and retrospective, sharing what I have learned and am currently learning, and connecting with the people reading it. It is also my attempt to inspire others to create their own corner of the web and push back against the constant noise of the internet. As such, there will be no Ads, AI-generated content, or tracking found here.
I got into software development because I enjoy tinkering and diving in to how and why things work. I have broad interests spanning computer science to ecology, specifically how software development and data-driven approaches can support sustainability, agriculture, and benefit ecosystems rather than degrade them.
I am currently looking for a remote opportunity (or local to the northern Illinois / southern Wisconsin area) to work in software development, contributing to meaningful systems with a responsible company.
Welcome to my corner of the web!
Updated: June 2026
Contact Info
Feel free to get in contact with me through email or at one of these.
Education
School
- Master of Engineering, Engineering / Digital Agriculture - University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign -- ( Start Fall 2026 )
- Bachelor of Science, Software Engineering - Western Governors University -- ( Sept 2023 - Sept 2025 )
- Associate of Applied Science, Web Programming - Rasmussen University -- ( Oct 2020 - Aug 2022 )
Certification
- WGU Back End Developer -- November 2024
- CompTIA Project+ -- July 2024
- AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner -- October 2023
- Udacity Front End Developer -- February 2023
What I'm Doing
Learning
- Software development projects
- Linear algebra
- Messing around with LM Studio and local AI models
- University of Illinois (UIUC) Master's of Engineering with concentration in Digital Agriculture (Fall '26)
- Supplementing my son's learning in social studies, math, & science
Leisure
- Writing this website
- Tending my garden and aquarium
- Being an excellent cook 😅
- Playing a few different video games (Baldur's Gate 3, Factorio, ARC Raiders, Minecraft with my son)
Tools
Current Tech Stack
- Infrastructure: Linux / AWS / Nginx
- Backend: Java / Spring Boot Framework
- Database: MariaDB
- Frontend: HTMX / JavaScript / CSS
Current Software Tools
- IntelliJ IDEA
- DBeaver
- Docker
- AWS
Main System
- Linux Mint
- AMD Ryzen 5 3600
- AMD Radeon RX 6750 XT 12GB
- 4x 8GB Corsair LPX DDR4 3200 RAM
- 2TB Crucial PCI Express NVME drive
- 256GB Western Digital Blue SATA SSD
- 1TB Western Digital Blue 7200 RPM HDD
- 36" ViewSonic 1440p monitor
- 32" ASUS 1080p monitor
- Manual crank standup/sitdown desk
Other Systems
Headless Local Server- 2GB Raspberry Pi 4, Linux Raspberry Pi OS lite, 32GB MicroSD, 32GB USB 3 Flash Drive for backup
- 2GB t4g.small EC2, Amazon Linux
- 16" ASUS ZenBook, 8th Gen Intel I7, 16GB RAM, 256MB SSD, 1TB HDD, Windows 11 / Linux Mint Dual Boot