Chris received his B.S. in Geology from Illinois State University in 1988. After graduation he went to work underground on Milwaukee’s Deep Tunnel project as a surveyor’s assistant. In 1989 Chris began graduate studies in Geography at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, while continuing to work on the survey crew and working part time at the UWM Cartography and Geographic Information Science Center. Having received an officer’s commission, Chris fulfilled an Army Reserve obligation with the 961st Engineer Battalion in Milwaukee, WI.

In 1993, Chris started work with Layne-Northwest as a project manager in the Special Projects Division which provides highly specialized construction drilling services. After three years at Layne-Northwest, he left for Chicago to try his hand at self employment, providing technical illustration and design services and working temporary for DDB Needham, a major advertising agency.

Chris began at Auburn in 2000, working in the Government Documents cataloging unit at Auburn University Libraries. His principal duty was to process new maps received through the depository library system, eventually taking on the whole of the map collection to include cataloging, reference, filing, repair, and collection development. In addition to these duties, he ran the day to day operation in the Library’s GIS/media lab which was the predecessor to the current Digital Resource Lab.

In 2004 Chris was hired into his current position with the DRL which recently has seen a major upgrade in size from eighteen workstations to a total of thirty five Macs and PCs.

Gary Hawkins graduated from Auburn University in 1997 with a Bachelor in Fine Arts degree concentrating in Graphic Design. Wanting to learn 3D computer animation, he applied, and was accepted into East Tennessee State University’s Masters of Science program in Technology with a concentration in Digital Media. In 1999 Gary accepted a graphic artist position at Richmond, Virginia’s ABC affiliate television station. Seven months later Gary was offered the Art Director position. Four years later, in 2004, he accepted a position with Auburn University’s RBD Library’s Systems Department. Gary and two others were hired to design and staff a space that would soon be coined the Digital Resource Laboratory (DRL).

"I thrive on learning and problem solving, that’s why being in an environment like DRL is so rewarding. The Digital Resource Lab is the place to be. It’s where ideas are realized."

Eileen graduated from the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa in 2003 with a B.A. in Graphic Design. She went back to school to study Library Science and received her M.L.I.S. in August, 2005. After graduation, Eileen worked as an Archival Technician on digital collections for the W.S. Hoole Special Collections Library at UA. She moved to Auburn to join the DRL team in Fall 2006.

Gerrit DeWitt joined the DRL in August 2006. A native of Auburn, AL, Gerrit holds a BS in Applied Mathematics from Auburn University. Gerrit was hired by Apple right out of high school as a Campus Rep, and has nine years of experience with Mac OS X and Mac OS X Server. Coupled with his standing as only one of a handful people with Apple Certified System Administrator certification, he is well-known both online and in-person as a definitive source for solutions. Gerrit has consulted with major school districts and sportswear companies, providing the necessary support and expertise for integrating existing enterprise services with Apple systems.

Since joining the DRL, Gerrit has continued by providing the University with many technical firsts not found elsewhere on campus. Had it not been for a customized print server that he created from open-source software, library patrons would still be subjected to a frustratingly long wait for their large-format prints.

Gerrit also possesses a rare skill among technical administrators: He is able to clearly explain abstract concepts and provide concrete advice. Whether it’s some custom PHP programming for a doctoral student’s survey or help automating a task in Adobe InDesign, Gerrit is the person with the answers.