Jared Bowman, Development Team Specialist, is officially in the homestretch of his college career at Ball State and about to earn his bachelor’s in Computer Science with a concentration in Game Design Development. He prides himself on being futuristic, dedicated, and strategic—all fitting traits for a developer.
Jared’s love of development sprouted from Minecraft. He used to create plugins with Java in Minecraft with the help of YouTube videos. He learned the building blocks through coding the game and experimenting in HTML, which helped his transition into new coding languages like REACT much easier by the time he got to the Corps.
When he started college in 2019 at Manchester University in Fort Wayne, close to his home in South Bend, he began as a software engineer. However, the trajectory of his career changed a little bit when he transferred to Ball State in 2020 and discovered the world of computer science. Computer science was a healthy blend of everything he loved about software engineering while also providing something broader for him with more avenues to explore.
“I like a challenge and learning new things. I’m a visual learner.”
Juggling multiple projects proves to be a welcoming challenge to Jared, especially when working on the DCHQ site. He’s currently working on an Apple TV app version of the site, which is challenging because it’s a completely different language than REACT, one of the most well-known coding languages for our developers.
DCHQ involves complex language, but Jared invites and embraces the challenge. In fact, this is why it’s his favorite project he’s ever done at the Corps. Another honorable mention is the Orchid Database project, where he built a frontend for tablets so the client could modify plant information easily. Technology is constantly evolving, so any opportunity to adapt old tech like HigherPeople to new tech, such as Docker, is right up his alley.
“Communication is very easy. I never have to hold anybody’s hand when collaborating on projects.”
When it comes to learning new things, Jared relies on visual materials like video essays on YouTube. Whenever he feels stuck, he leans on YouTube and ChatGPT to offer simpler breakdowns of problems. He also asks his fellow developers and peers at the Corps. Jared raved about how easy communication is at the Corps and how a lot of what he does as a developer is to make the job of future devs who take over his projects feel like a walk in the park.
Blending creativity and coding has always been a part of Jared’s life dating back to his high school days when he did theater, drama club, and symphonic marching band. When he’s not coding away in the office, Jared enjoys editing videos in Adobe Premiere Pro, coding in Minecraft, and playing video games—specifically DDR, Beat Saber, and Battlefield—on his PC. He has three personal side projects he’s working on as well. One of the projects is a wish list website that serves as a hub to combine one person’s online wish lists (Amazon, Etsy, etc.) so they’re in one place. Another one of his personal projects is a podcast website he’s building for his aunt.
“There is a huge opportunity to take on [freelancing websites] right now. Whenever I’ve talked to someone about creating their own website for them, it’s excited them.”
Beyond the Corps, Jared sees himself freelancing, ideally creating websites for people in need. He said that it’s exciting on both ends. Increasing accessibility for others is something Jared gets joy out of doing for others and for himself, whether it’s at the Corps or somewhere else.
