Gavin Liddell

Gavin Liddell

Student at UT Dallas

Richardson, TX

About Me

  • I’m currently a student at the University of Texas at Dallas studying Computer Information Systems and Technology, with a focus in enterprise systems.
  • I have a variety of work experiences, primarily associated with non-profit religious organizations, but I’ve also taken on many personal projects, such as this blog, to expand my skills and learn new ways of using technology.

Background

  • I started running my own homelab back in 2022 when I wanted to get away from some of the nonsense and politics with services like Spotify and Apple Music. I started hosting an application called Navidrome, which acts as a personal Spotify for music I buy and own. Since then, I have gradually grown the number of applications I run on my old 2017 i7-7500u Acer laptop. This learning experience has been instrumental to preparing me for a future within the CISTech world, and it’s something I’ve enjoyed doing since I started learning about it.
  • The purpose of this blog is to share my experiences going through college, lessons I learned, or random thoughts that I want to share with the world! Think of this like a healthier social media for me, where I can make posts, but without the downside of doom-scrolling right before an important test.
  • Additionally, I am a bit of an amateur when it comes to writing, but hopefully this blog will help me to further develop my writing skills too! Either way, I hope you find my thoughts useful and insightful into the world I live in! Thanks for reading!

Experiences

IT Intern

Summer 2025 · IMA Financial Group Inc.

  • Managed 20+ laptops using Intune/Autopilot to optimize OOB user experience.
  • Closed 20+ help desk tickets on-site and remotely using FreshService and ScreenConnect.
  • Collected 100+ laptop service tags from 5+ sites for fetching warranty information and auditing.
  • Created 2 PowerShell scripts to assist with importing laptops into FreshService inventory system.
  • Assisted Systems Administrator with firewall configuration to optimize security and performance.

IT Intern

Summer 2024 · Harvest Midstream Company

  • Created contractor account management application to manage 100s of contractor accounts.
  • Documented 5 conference room audio/visual configurations for enhanced ease of use.
  • Designed 6 phishing templates for 3 phishing campaigns to strengthen cybersecurity practices.
  • Planned and analyzed office layout for 20+ new networking access points for optimal internet access.
  • Presented summer projects to high-level executives, reporting newly developed skills.

Media Production Crew

Summer 2023 · Montreat Conference Center

Summer Program Facilitator

Summer 2022 · Presbyterian Mo-Ranch Assembly

Lead Audio/Visual Technician

2017-2022 · The Woodlands Community Presbyterian Church

  • Coordinated live-streaming initiative including hardware installation worth $15,000.
  • Collaborated with IT department to design a new network infrastructure, improving speeds by 400%.
  • Onboarded and trained 2 new team members to ensure 0% of down-time.
  • Designed 100+ ProPresenter slides per week to enhance worship experience.
  • Enhanced the church’s outreach through sound production management.

Education

B.S. in Computer Information Systems and Technology

2023-Present · University of Texas at Dallas

2020-2023 · Lone Star College - Montgomery

Skills

OS: Windows, macOS, Linux
Software: Microsoft 365, Active Directory, Docker, SAP
Programming/Automations: Java, HTML, PowerShell, UiPath
Artificial Intelligence: ChatGPT, ollama
Data: SQL, Excel, PowerBI, Tableau

Hobbies

  • Computer Building
  • Homelab Managing
  • Gaming
  • Rock Climbing