Will Lehman is the Senior Web Developer in the College of Arts and Sciences at Syracuse University, where he is a member of the communications office. In this role, he focuses on enhancing the user experience of the College's website and related subsites, leading development projects and extensions within the College's Wagtail CMS, and providing web guidance and support to college partners. He brings an eclectic academic background to his work — including an M.S. in Information Sciences with a focus on metadata and web development, an M.A. in Linguistics specializing in syntax, and a B.A. in Global Affairs with studies in Asian cultures, Japanese, and religion. Before transitioning to web management and development, Will spent years working in libraries across a range of roles, from public services and reference to people management and communications. With over a decade of experience in higher education, he has held positions at George Mason University, Brandeis University, Northeastern University, and Syracuse University.
About Will
Background
Work Experience
Senior Web Developer
Syracuse University College of Arts and Sciences
2022 - Present
- Oversee the College of Arts and Sciences website development in Python (Django/Wagtail), CSS/SCSS styles, and HTML templates.
- Manage over 7,000 pages of content in Wagtail CMS/Django.
- Collect and analyze Google Analytics data for reporting and to inform decision-making.
- Field requests for content and other changes to the site in Jira.
- Lead and plan complex projects.
- Manage the day-to-day operations of the web team, overseeing the work of a full-time staff member.
Projects of note
- Cloud Hosting Migration: Migrated the Arts & Sciences website, roughly 7,000 pages, from self-hosted campus servers to CodeRed Cloud.
- SharePoint Documentation: Migrated internal help documentation from Confluence to a locked-down SharePoint site for Arts & Sciences and Maxwell School staff and faculty.
Web Content Manager
Northeastern University, D’Amore-McKim School of Business
2020 - 2022
- Acted as the primary steward for the D’Amore-McKim School of Business’s WordPress website’s 4600+ pages of content hosted on Northeastern RHEL servers and WPEngine cloud-hosted storage.
- Managed complex web improvement projects and monitor the site for bugs working with our external web development partner 10up.
- Created and maintained processes and standards to improve content for the web.
- Monitored content posted to the website and act as brand steward for web content for D’Amore-McKim.
- Assisted college stakeholders in preparing their content for and posting their content to the web.
- Also included maintaining web bios for the college faculty, staff, and related parties, posting event pages, and managing news stories.
- Leveraged search engine optimization (SEO) tools (including Yoast SEO for WordPress) and search engine marketing (SEM) tools and reports to optimize the site.
Projects of note
- Forms Overhaul: At D'Amore-McKim, I performed an overhaul of the customer-facing web forms, introducing new web forms and streamlining processes.
- Program Page Redesign: I created a plan for our graduate program pages.
Public Services Technology Coordinator
Brandeis University Library
2016 - 2020
- Co-managed 40+ student employees who staffed a public service desk.
- Led the technology borrowing program increasing circulations, strengthening and increasing the size of the collection to over 50 types of equipment, and lowering and reorganizing the fines and fees.
- Acted as main content editor for the borrowing and about the library areas of the Library’s website. Assisted with other areas.
- Worked on a major information architecture redesign of the Library’s website that spurred from a reorganization.
- Worked on migration of the website to an updated, responsive template.
- Assisted with the library’s decision process and transition to a new ticketing software.
- Sat on Library Systems committees; Assisted with Alma and Primo projects.
Projects of note
- Library Fines and Fees Reorganization: Rethought fines and fees for library equipment borrowing.
- Online Service Desk and SpringShare Suite: I played a role in the selection and implementation of a multi-faceted online service desk and user support system.
Earlier positions · 2011–2016
Library Information Assistant
Fairfax County Public Library
2015 - 2016
- Provided reference and public services at branch libraries throughout Fairfax County.
Project of note
- Adult Summer Reading Program: Work around adult summer reading programs at Fairfax County Public Library.
Library Associate
Arlington Public Library
2014 - 2015
- Provided public services and reference assistance at Arlington Public Library branches.
Projects of note
No projects listed yet.
Government Documents Assistant
George Mason University Libraries
2011 - 2014
- Assisted with government documents cataloging, reference, and public services at George Mason University Libraries.
Projects of note
No projects listed yet.
Education
M.S. Information Sciences
University of TennesseeM.A. English (linguistics concentration)
George Mason UniversityB.A. Global Affairs
George Mason UniversitySkills
- Project management software
including Trello, Asana, Microsoft Planner, Microsoft Loop
- Information architecture
- Customer service
- Content Management Systems (CMS)
including Wagtail, WordPress, Drupal, Cascade
- Web Frameworks
including Django, Astro, React, Vue
- Responsive and accessible web design
- Usability testing
including first-click, card sorting, Hotjar heatmaps
- Yoast SEO Certification
- Web and PDF accessibility standards
- Google Analytics and Google Search Console web analytics
Certifications
- Japanese-Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) level N5 certification
- ExLibris Alma certified administrator
- ExLibris Primo certified administrator
- Virginia Certification of Professional Librarianship
- Yoast SEO Certification