Theresa Summa

Software Engineering Leader in the SF Bay Area

First, A Quick Note

I began my professional life much earlier than many, working full time in a pizzeria by 15 years old. Twenty years later, my brain and body told me it was time for a break.

I experienced some health issues, but never stopped being an engineer. In fact, I have become a stronger engineer for the time off. I have continued to read the industry newsletters and blogs, I have been writing code, including for a computer science course I completed. I have become wiser, more confident and patient.

I am a stronger leader, a sharper problem solver and reinvigorated to bring value to your project or team.

Professional experience: Government

18F

Lead Innovation Specialist
Washington, DC and remote
December 2014 - August 2018
  • Extended software used to parse and view federal regulation for the Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms Bureau, increasing regulatory compliance and ease of use for ATF staff using React, JavaScript, Backbone.js, Python and Django, Sass, HTML.
  • Worked closely with designers and server side engineers to develop a website for an initiative that First Lady Michelle Obama created, resulting in interest being generated in the program and sign ups to the campaigh, using Jekyll, JavaScript, Sass.
  • Built an engineering department from a little over a dozen to sixty engineers, focusing on engineer productivity and career development, exponentially increasing the number of paid projects the agency could accept.
  • Managed a team of 3-6 high performing engineers, some of whom were tech leads in their focus areas (front end, devops, etc), and a handful of whom were promoted off my team, becoming leaders alongside me.
  • Co-authored Code of Conduct for events as part of internal Diversity and Inclusion Guild, which became the foundation for the organizational Code of Conduct.

18F

Innovation Specialist
Washington, DC and remote
August 2014 - December 2014

CFPB

Technology & Innovation Fellow
Washington, DC and remote
December 2012 - August 2014

Professional experience: Media Companies

Quartz

Web Application Engineer
New York, NY
July 2012 - October 2012

ConsumerSearch

Senior Web Developer
New York, NY
May 2010 - April 2012
  • Maintained and built new features for a consumer product comparison website owned by The New York Times Company, using JavaScript, CSS, HTML, Drupal, PHP, jQuery.
  • Halved load times by minimizing HTTP requests and optimizing server side code for Drupal views/templates.
  • Co-led usability testing and user feedback collection, alongside the design director.

The Economist

Client Side Developer
New York, NY
May 2009 - May 2010
  • Ported complex news site from Coldfusion to Drupal.
  • Mentored Coldfusion engineers learning Drupal and PHP.

Sony Music

Drupal Themer
New York, NY
April 2009 - May 2009
  • Ported musician websites from Drupal 5 to Drupal 6, including artists like Ben Folds and Kesha.

The New York Observer

Front End Developer
New York, NY
October 2008 - April 2009
  • Built the front end of two versions of a high traffic media website using Drupal, PHP, HTML, CSS, SVN.

Made with Love

And built using Next.js, Tailwind CSS, Google Fonts, Github and deployed with Vercel. Illustrative elements are © 2024 Theresa Summa