MattBechtel

Seattle, WA 98101 ยทbechma02@gmail.com

I am a full-stack developer with experience in developing technical processes with an eye towards finding revenue-generating solutions. I bring expertise in backend systems, API development and integration with some frontend experience working with modern JavaScript frameworks.


Skills

Programming Languages & Tools
  • Ruby
  • Python
  • Rails
  • HTML
  • ES6+
  • React, Redux
  • MySQL, PostgreSQL, Redis
  • EC2, S3, ElasticBeanstalk
  • Linux
  • Collaboration, Working on Cross-Functional Teams
  • API Development & Serialization - Optimizing Database Calls
  • Testing with Python unittest, Testslide, RSpec, Cucumber, and Capybara
  • Agile Development & Continuous Development

Experience

Production Engineer

Meta

I design architecture and develop internal features to support capacity and resource management for the world's largest internal private cloud.

August 2020 - Present

Software Application Developer

Global Impact

I developed and extended features for several Ruby on Rails applications used by staff and clients in support of a non-profit organization committed to building partnerships and resources for the world's most vulnerable people. Among my major projects was integrating a funds transfer system to distribute grants to people who lost their jobs due to the CoVid-19 economic slowdown. I was also responsible for building out behavioral test suites with Cucumber.

May 2020 - August 2020

Director of Donor Relations

For Love of Children

I managed all fundraising efforts for a small non-profit organization dedicated to providing out-of-school-time educational services to children in the District of Columbia. I built relationships with staff, donors, and other stakeholders with the goal of increasing funding for the organization's priorities.

May 2019 - September 2019

Development Officer

Refugees International

As Development Officer at Refugees International, an international advocacy and policy organization, I developed a number of fundraising programs, oftentimes incorporating new software and technology, to increase revenue. Among other projects, I developed an end-of-year Presidential ask solicitation program to boost major gifts and launched a webinar program to keep major donors engaged year-round.

August 2014 - April 2019

Database Administrator

Refugees International

As keeper of the database, I managed to keep Refugees International's donor database clean, updated, and functional. During this time, I also managed a major database transition from one software provider to another and ensured that different systems across the company could share the same data.

September 2010 - August 2014

Education

Flatiron School

Software Engineering
Over a fifteen week period, I immersed myself in software engineering concepts, modern coding languages, and Agile software concepts. I built 5 working applications from scratch using Ruby, Rails, and JavaScript frameworks.
October 2019 - February 2020

Gettysburg College

Bachelor of Arts
Anthropology & Religion (Double Major)
August 2005 - May 2009

Portfolio Highlights

Succotash

Farm Management Software

Succotash is a farm management software application built with a Rails/PostgreSQL backend and a React-enabled, Material-UI frontend with state managed in Redux. Farmers and gardeners can manage their crop cycles from planting through harvest. By providing a date to the application, users are able to view and edit the status of their farms and its sub-divisions, which allows the app to serve as both a storage of farm history and a planner for future crop cycles.

Catch 22: The Game

Computer Game based on the Classic American Novel

Catch-22 is a novel by Joseph Heller. Catch-22: The Game honors the themes, characters, and events of that novel through a fun and humorous text-based strategy format. Messages are displayed at intervals with async/await functions. Players are provided with options with the goal of surviving as a bombardier over Italy during World War II. A balance of random-number generation and player decisions determine the result of each round. Staying true to the themes of the novel, the game is impossible to win. The game is built with a Rails/PostgreSQL backend and a React frontend with Semantic-UI components.

Metrobus 2020

Bus Prediction Application for Commuters in and around Washington, DC

Utilizing WMATA's public API, Metrobus 2020 allows DC-based commuters to accurately predict bus and train arrivals, favorite their frequent stations and busstops, and set an alarm for when a bus approaches a stop. The app uses an uncluttered minimalist frontend written in vanilla JavaScript with Bulma components. The rails backend protects API keys and fetches data from WMATA, caching some data in a Redis database to prevent superfluous calls to the WMATA API. A simple sign-up and password system allows users' favorites to be persisted to the database for future use in the app.