(I'm) Bent

I'm John Bent, a full stack developer and sometimes artist & illustrator.

I created my first personal website back in 2007 out of necessity after art school. A personal website was essential for applying to gallery exhibitions and promoting my illustration work. Being a D.I.Y enthusiast, I taught myself HTML and CSS to build it.

Despite seeing myself primarily as an analog artist, I unexpectedly found joy in creating websites. It reminded me of what I loved about art: solving problems, working systematically, and abstract thinking.

Now, with a decade of experience as a LAMP/LEMP stack developer, I specialize in building custom applications and front end and back end development in various content management systems. I thrive on the ever-evolving nature of web development, which demands continual research and learning.

Professionally, I excel in developing plugins and modules for Craft CMS and WordPress, integrating APIs with applications, and crafting simple, modular code. I’m adept at both front end and back end development and enjoy projects that leverage my diverse skill set.

Outside of coding, I play drums in the post-punk band Future Stories, create comics and zines, and love exploring outdoors on my bike.

Experience

  • June 2023 - June 2024
    University of Wisconsin - Madison
    Software Engineer & Developer

    Responsible for building and maintaining WordPress single and multisite instances, advanced development functionality, API integrations, membership portals, CRM integrations and custom plugins for a large public University.

    • Participated in and led architecture and project scope conversations with internal and external stakeholders
    • Worked with UI/UX staff to incorporate WCAG 2.x standards into custom functionality
    • Managed cloud server environments for custom web applications
    • Participated in R&D projects across University IT departments including building API integrations with internal APIs
    JavaScript PHP WordPress Plugin Development WordPress Gutenberg WordPress Theme Development HTML CSS/SASS React/JSX Linux System Administration Figma Google Analytics Google Tag Manager
  • Sept. 2022 - June 2023
    Healthcentric Advisors
    Healthcentric Advisors

    Responsible for developing and maintaining custom PHP applications for a Providence based nonprofit in the healthcare space.

    • Built and maintained internal web apps to track grant applications and patient outcome reporting
    • Integrated Zoom and WebEx APIs into internal calendar systems
    • Maintained external Learning Management Systems (LMS) used by external stakeholders for nursing accreditation
    • Collaborated with web developers to maintain internal web applications
       
    JavaScript PHP WordPress HTML CSS/SASS LAMP Stack Figma
  • March 2020 - Aug. 2022
    Envision Technology Advisors
    Senior Web Developer

    Responsible for building web sites and web applications for a variety of clients across multiple industries including nonprofits, higher education, and healthcare

    • Participated in meetings with internal and external stakeholders in project scope conversations.
    • Conceived of and built CMS modules, plugins and themes in Craft CMS, WordPress and Drupal to suit the business needs of Envision’s clients
    • Maintained cloud servers and CI/CD pipelines 
    • Participated in code reviews with other developers and staff
    • Met with external stakeholders to discuss project requirements and scope, and to demonstrate in progress application functionality
    JavaScript PHP Craft CMS WordPress Craft Plugin Development Drupal LEMP Stack Docker Google Analytics Google Tag Manager
  • Nov. 2019 - March 2020
    Upserve
    Senior Web Developer

    Served as the lead developer for Upserve’s marketing department. Responsible for the maintenance of all Upserve marketing web properties, including upserve.com - a large WordPress multi-site instance, and other marketing micro-sites.

    • Built WordPress custom themes and plugins to support marketing campaigns
    • Built and debugged HTML emails in Marketo
    • Built form landing pages in Marketo for lead generation
    • Assisted in installing and debugging third party compliance for CCPA and GDPR
       
    JavaScript PHP WordPress Plugin Development WordPress Theme Development HTML CSS/SASS
  • July 2019 - Oct. 2019
    Tiziani Whitmyre
    WordPress Web Developer
    • Built custom WordPress themes and plugins for a variety of clients.
    • Debugged plugin and third party API integrations
    • Worked with marketing automation software (SharpSpring) to build forms for lead generation 
       
    JavaScript PHP WordPress Plugin Development WordPress Theme Development HTML CSS/SASS
  • Jan. 2017 - July 2019
    Providence Public Library
    Web Developer/Digital Content Coordinator
    • Led efforts and assisted with the redesign and migration of all web properties for the Providence Public Library, including Provlib.org, the digital repository ProvLibDigital.org, and AskRI.org
    • Built custom WordPress themes/plugins as well as Drupal themes and modules to extend website functionality and pull in data from third party APIs
    • Built tools to streamline the process of metadata conversion and normalization from .CSV files to XML documents for ingest into the libraries’ digital repository platform
    • Managed junior staff responsible for digitizing and archiving items in the libraries’ archives
       
  • Nov. 2016 - April 2017
    6 Square Design
    Web Developer
    • Built custom WordPress and Adobe Business Catalyst themes and plugins for a variety of clients
    • Maintained and provided troubleshooting for existing web properties for 6 Square clients
    • Migrated client websites to WordPress from other CMS platforms
       
    JavaScript PHP WordPress Plugin Development WordPress Theme Development HTML CSS/SASS
  • March 2016 - Nov. 2016
    Technology Therapy Group
    WordPress Web Developer
    • Worked with design staff, marketing staff and other web developers to build custom
eCommerce sites and B2B and B2C sites in WordPress, Shopify and other CMS platforms
    • Optimized websites for speed, performance and S.E.O.
    • Provided web support services for existing client base
       
    JavaScript PHP WordPress Plugin Development WordPress Theme Development HTML CSS/SASS
  • June 2014 - March 2016
    WPRI 12 / Fox Providence
    Digital Media Manager
    • Built web applications to support sales, newsroom, and production staff in easily posting breaking news content, tracking projects, and managing all related web assets
    • Conceptualized and built interactive web supplements to complement on-air and online investigative news content, including info-graphics, charts, database-driven modules, and micro-sites
    • Managed and maintained all websites and related servers, graphics, and databases
    JavaScript PHP WordPress HTML CSS/SASS LAMP Stack Photoshop Illustrator Google Analytics

Featured Projects

  • University of Wisconsin - E-Business Consortium - thumbnail image
    University of Wisconsin - E-Business Consortium
    Client: The University of Wisconsin - Madison

    A WordPress website migration for the University of Wisconsin E-Business Consortium (UWEBC). A bulk of the content was pulled out of a Microsoft Dynamics CRM using a custom WordPress plugin I built. The data synced by the plugin includes data related to events hosted on-site and online by UWEBC as well as membership data.

    Project Details View Site
  • Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation - thumbnail image
    Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation
    Client: Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation/Envision Technology Advisors

    The Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation's website, found at berkshiretaconic.org, serves as a vital platform for fostering philanthropy and community engagement across Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York's Berkshire Taconic region.

    I was responsible for the front end build and data modeling of this Craft CMS site. The site is built to use modular layouts allowing site admins to dynamically swap out content types depending on the needs of a page or section.

    Project Details View Site
  • Kahn Litwin Renza - thumbnail image
    Kahn Litwin Renza
    Client: Kahn, Litwin, Renza/Envision Technology Advisors

    Kahn, Litwin, Renza & Co. (KLR) is a prominent accounting and business consulting firm providing a wide array of services including tax, audit, advisory, cybersecurity, and business valuation.

    I was responsible for integrating their existing Craft CMS site with several addition sites, creating a multi-site network. Part of this project included migrating data out of different CMSs, creating different templates for each site in the network, and overhauling the navigation system of the main site.

    Project Details View Site
  • Savers Bank - thumbnail image
    Savers Bank
    Client: Savers Bank/Envision Technology Advisors

    Savers Bank is a community-focused financial institution offering personal and business banking services.

    I was responsible for building out a re-design of this site on Craft CMS, including building a megamenu navigation system, adding in date/time based display for various homepage elements, and adding CSS animations.

    Project Details View Site
  • Back to Work - Skills For Rhode Island's Future - thumbnail image
    Back to Work - Skills For Rhode Island's Future
    Client: Skills For Rhode Island's Future/Envision Technology Advisors

    During the early COVID-19 pandemic, Skills for Rhode Island's Future contacted Envision Technology Advisors to quickly create a Craft CMS website connecting unemployed individuals with essential industry jobs. "Back To Work" initially featured a job board with listings from Bullhorn Staffing's API. I built a Craft module to pull and populate these entries. As the pandemic continued, the site expanded with web forms for job applications, and I extended the module to send applicant data back to Bullhorn, updating or creating records as needed.

    Project Details View Site
  • The Summit Foundation - thumbnail image
    The Summit Foundation
    Client: The Summit Foundation/Envision Technology Advisors

    The Summit Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving and enriching the lives of people and communities in Summit County, Colorado.

    I was responsible for the front-end build of this site on Craft CMS.

    Project Details View Site
  • ProvLib Digital - thumbnail image
    ProvLib Digital
    Client: Providence Public Library

    The Providence Public Library's Digital Collections website, accessible at provlibdigital.org, is a treasure trove of historical artifacts and documents. Catering to scholars, researchers, and history enthusiasts alike, the site hosts a vast array of digitized materials ranging from rare photographs to manuscripts and newspapers.

    For this project I was responsible for migrating digital assets from digital repository CMS Omeka to Islandora, a digital repository framework compromised of open-source technologies, including Drupal (a content management system) and Fedora (a digital repository system), and Solr (search indexing). I also built internal tools to covert metadata to XML files for ingest, built a custom Drupal theme, and built Drupal modules to ingest specific datatypes into the repository.

    Project Details View Site
  • Providence Public Library - thumbnail image
    Providence Public Library
    Client: Providence Public Library

    The Providence Public Library's website, provlib.org, is the primary gateway for accessing information about the library's many offerings, including educational opportunities, research collections, digital resources, and community events.

    I was responsible for implementing and extending a custom WordPress theme designed by a third party studio. I also automated content migration from the library's Drupal site, built custom templates for post types to aid marketing initiatives, and built a custom plugin to pull event data out of a third party system, LibCal.

    Project Details View Site
  • Historical Hurricane Tracker - thumbnail image
    Historical Hurricane Tracker
    Client: WPRI 12

    A "web extra" built for WPRI 12/Fox Providence - a local news station located in East Providence, Rhode Island.

    While working at WPRI I built several interactive pieces of content to enhance news stories. This was one of those projects. This was initially built to complement hurricane/extreme weather content. This web app allows users to select a year between 1900 - 2014, and an oceanic basin, and then select a hurricane or tropical storm path displayed on an intergrated map. The dataset was provided by N.O.A.A.

    Project Details View Site