Miranda Knee
Class of 2015, Web Design and Development
Current Job Title: Interactive Developer
Current Employer: Garrison and Hughes
I consider myself to be a detail-oriented web developer who utilizes a combination of HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and jQuery to build appealing, responsive websites. I am experienced in CMS platforms, particularly WordPress, and familiar with creating custom themes to meet clients’ needs. I enjoy coding, problem-solving, debugging, and a good podcast.
Please provide a brief job description and/or list any recognition, awards, and promotions you have received since graduation.
I’m a detail-oriented web developer who utilizes a combination of HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and jQuery to build appealing, responsive websites. Experienced in CMS platforms, particularly WordPress, and familiar with creating custom themes to meet client needs.
I enjoy coding, problem-solving, debugging, and a good podcast. I also lead WordPress Meetup on the topic of CMB2 plugin; serve on Pittsburgh Technical College’s Multimedia Web Advisory Board; featured on “Hallway Chats”, a podcast that interviews users within the WordPress community; and I was featured in “Women in Tech PGH” article 53.
Describe any interesting projects that you have worked on:
As of late I have been working a lot with WordPress and using a plugin called CMB2. CMB2 is an acronym for Custom Meta Boxes. This plugin allowed me to create my own custom form fields to allow my clients/teammates to easily enter information such as title, date, description and/or images and then publish them onto the front-end in an appealing manner. This process has simplified my workload by allowing my clients to independently update their WordPress sites as needed. My most recent custom meta boxes were designed for a company staff page that allows users to enter the employee name, title, contact information, and photo. No extra coding is required to update the company staff page.
What did you learn at PTC that still inspires you to this day?
PTC’s Web Design and Development program introduced me to the process of building a website from beginning to deployment. The process has been extremely helpful and useful for me, which is why I continue to stick with it to this day. I’m grateful to have been exposed to this process during my time at PTC for it has helped me with many web projects at my day job and freelance work.
What or who was your biggest influencer as a PTC student?
My biggest influencer as a PTC student was likely the web instructor Frank Schurter. He did a great job at challenging students to be better web designers and developers. At the time it drove me crazy because I thought he nitpicked at everything, which only forced me to level up and be a stronger developer. A close second influencer was my younger brother, Adam Knee, who was also taking the web program at PTC. Having a younger sibling in the same program inspired me to set a good example and created a sense healthy competition.