Software Engineer
Ten-plus years building software that's fast,
maintainable, and built to last.
"We can do anything with code — but we should always ask ourselves: should we?"
About
I started in print, migrated to digital, and never stopped moving. These days the vast majority of my time is spent in text editors across a multitude of programming languages — though the design instincts still inform how I think about problems.
Over ten-plus years of growth in software, people, and leadership — self-directed, none of it accidental. I care about the craft: software that's fast, maintainable, and built to last.
Expertise
Rust/Ruby integration · Bottleneck analysis · System optimization · Performance profiling · Data pipeline architecture
Ruby on Rails · Rust · JavaScript / TypeScript · PHP (Laravel) · Python · Java · Scala
Distributed systems · API architecture · Legacy modernization · Framework migrations · Integration patterns
Docker · CI/CD · Linux · Selenium automation · Datadog · Redshift · Database optimization
Test-driven development · RSpec · Jest · Accessibility engineering (WCAG AA/AAA)
Claude Code · Agentic coding · Subagent workflows · Accelerated delivery across unfamiliar codebases
Services
Full-stack engineering, API design, system architecture, performance optimization, and legacy modernization. Ruby on Rails, Rust, JavaScript, and beyond.
Interfaces that are not only visually compelling but accessible and usable for all users. WCAG-compliant, performance-first, and built to hold up.
A decade of design thinking applied to digital products. Accessibility-focused, brand-aware, and rooted in the understanding that great design and great code aren't opposites.
Technical mentorship for engineers at any level. Hands-on instruction grounded in real-world practice — the same approach I've brought to classrooms and engineering teams alike.
Experience
Senior Software Engineer
Promoted from Software Engineer · March 2026 · Remote
Carrier integration platform serving agents, brokerages, and carriers across commercial insurance. Pioneered a self-directed Rust/Ruby hybrid architecture to eliminate data processing bottlenecks. Promoted to strategic sub-team targeting high-complexity carriers and difficult markets.
Lead Software Engineer — Full Stack
Led architectural modernization — migrating PHP monoliths to Laravel and Rails, engineering Docker infrastructure for digital repositories, and establishing TDD workflows and accessibility standards across teams.
Software Developer / Graphic Designer
Integrated features for admin interfaces and player sign-up wizards on a sports recruiting platform. Added RSpec test coverage for untested logic and mitigated a copyright infringement issue caused by a third-party agency.
Front-end Developer — Mid-Level
Built enterprise interfaces consuming RESTful APIs within 2-week agile sprints, collaborating across distributed back-end and design teams.
Junior Software Engineer
Built RESTful JSON APIs for archival and library systems. Self-taught Node.js to prototype API aggregation middleware. Automated data migration across CSV, JSON, and XML.
Front-end Web Designer
Managed web presence for Eberly College of Arts and Sciences — 12–15 primary sites, 30+ departmental properties, 8 interns supervised over 3 years.
Teaching
My teaching philosophy combines hands-on experience with foundational instruction. I believe the best way to learn to build things is to build things — and the best way to teach is to meet students where they actually are, not where the curriculum assumes they'll be.
I've brought that same approach to engineering teams — mentoring junior engineers, establishing standards, and building cultures where people aren't afraid to ask hard questions.
Lindsey Wilson College
UX/UI certification program; JavaScript frameworks course using learn-by-doing methodology.
Fairmont State University
Graphic Communications, Computer Applications to Graphics, Introduction to 3D Modeling, Electronic Art, Motion Design.
Writing
A deep dive into programming challenges — exploring personal growth by solving problems in multiple ways.
Read → SCAD — MFA Thesis · 2016How frameworks, visual learning, and learn-by-doing methodology can introduce programming to design students.
Read → HackerNoon · 2017A self-evaluation of the journey from designer to programmer.
Read → Medium · 2017Automation from an archival system to a public repository using Ruby and Rails.
Read →Contact
I'm open to the right opportunity. If you're building something interesting, reach out.
dave@ddavisgraphics.com