matt intern

My name is Josh Hewitt and I am a web developer intern for the IISG Tipping Points and Indicators project at Purdue University. I graduated from Purdue in the fall of 2014 with a degree in computer graphics technology (CGT) with a focus on web development.

I started in the summer and was really excited about working on the Tipping Points project. Tipping Points and Indicators is a collaborative program that gives watershed planning groups across the Great Lakes the information they need to protect natural resources and enhance local economies. The process evaluates the users’ community characteristics, displays maps full of data about the watershed, and ends by creating action plans to achieve the desired goals of the user. The platform they use to do this is the web.
 
That’s where I come in!
 

My job is to fix bugs on the website and to add features to give the user a better experience. Recently, we have talked about redesigning the layout of the website because the current design is a bit outdated.

The past few weeks I have been talking with my team to figure out a layout that would enhance the users’ experience. I create mock-ups of layouts in Photoshop and then code it in Dreamweaver. We’re really excited to get this redesign done and show it to our users. We think they’ll be blown away with the improvement.

My internship has been great so far and I have learned A LOT. I would definitely recommend it to anyone looking to get some experience in web development. Not only is the web experience great but my team is really friendly and helpful. They’re always willing to give me advice when I’m stuck.

Great experience. Great people. Great internship.

-Josh Hewitt

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Some partnerships just make sense. Happy Valentine’s Day from IISG! 💕
This February marks a major milestone: 30 years of aquatic invasive species outreach by our team! To celebrate, IISG Director, Stuart Carlton, and Strategic Communication Coordinator, Renie Miles, sat down for a Sea Grant Chat with two key figures in IISG’s AIS history: Pat Charlebois, our assistant director and program leader, who spent over two decades leading our prevention efforts, and Katie O’Reilly, who took over that role in 2022. We discussed the evolution of the invasive species issue in the Great Lakes, the shift toward understanding human behavior, and the creative strategies that make this team so effective. Dive into the full interview at the link in bio.
Introducing the Lake Michigan Explorer! Start exploring the varied factors that impact the Great Lakes with our Explorer Series. This searchable database of external resources can help you find hands-on activities that spark curiosity and inspire action. ✨ What’s inside?Lesson plans, fact sheets, and reading materialsEngaging videos and visualizationsEasy-to-use filters by grade level, topic, and time.Perfect for classrooms and informal learning, this resource empowers students to become stewards of the Great Lakes.🔗 in bio for more.