Resume

Aidan Aumell

aidanaumell.com | aidanaumell@gmail.com | 425-943-0296

Education

2016 - 2023

Washington State University

  • Master of Arts in Curriculum and Instruction
  • Bachelor of Arts in Digital Technology and Culture

 

Experience

January 2021 – Spring 2023

Graduate Research Assistant at Washington State University

  • Designed and managed a knowledge mobilization website that provides a curated database of evidence-based resources, professional development opportunities, and online courses to teachers in Washington State.
  • Managed the VR2GO Lab in the College of Education which researches the use of Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, and Assistive Technology to support students with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
  • Assisted in the development and testing of assistive technology tools to support students with disabilities.

May 2020 – October 2020

Marketing & 3D Modeling Intern at Simply Augmented

  • Designed and managed a knowledge mobilization website that provides a curated database of evidence-based resources, professional development opportunities, and online courses to teachers in Washington State.
  • Managed the VR2GO Lab in the College of Education which researches the use of Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, and Assistive Technology to support students with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
  • Assisted in the development and testing of assistive technology tools to support students with disabilities.

May 2019 – September 2019

Social Media Intern at Seattle Pops

  • Managed and engaged with a diverse online community of over 5,000 followers on Facebook and Instagram.
  • Created visually appealing content to increase brand awareness and attract new followers.
  • Conducted competitor analysis to identify opportunities for differentiation and innovation in social media marketing.

December 2019 – February 2023

Freelance Website Designer

  • Provided custom website design solutions to various small businesses in the Seattle area. My clients include Seattle Pops, The National Center for Clinical Practice in Educator Preparation, and Servicos & Encomendas USA Corp.
  • Collaborated with clients to determine their needs and requirements for their websites.
  • Implemented responsive design principles and adhered to WCAG guidelines to create user-friendly website experiences.

Projects

August 2020 – June 2023

Kamiak Butte VR

  • Co-founded Kamiak Butte VR to provide undergraduate students enrolled in a Natural Resource Ecology course with a virtual reality field trip to Kamiak Butte County Park during and after the time of distance learning.
  • Won two grants and raised $44,000 dollars to further advance the development of the Kamiak Butte VR project.
  • Developed the Kamiak Butte VR software application through an iterative design process over a three-year period. Utilized Adobe Creative Suite, Figma, Maya, Unity, and 3DVista to build the Kamiak Butte VR program. Incorporated student feedback from surveys to improve and evolve the software.

January 2022 – December 2022

Master's Thesis - Undergraduate Students Perceptions of a Hybrid Field Trip in Natural Resource Ecology

  • Conducted research in an online undergraduate course at Washington State University in the School of the Environment to examine students’ perceptions of a hybrid field trip to Kamiak Butte County Park
  • Over the course of two semesters of instruction, I used surveys to collected both qualitative and quantitative data on students’ perceptions with the Kamiak Butte VR software program and the physical field trip.
  • Students expressed positive attitudes towards the hybrid field trip and valued hybrid field trip as the model provided students with multiple means to access, perceive, and comprehend information from the field site.

Awards

2021

Distinguished Scholar

  • Received an award from the Digital Technology and Culture Program for the Kamiak Butte VR project, which recognizes students who demonstrate sustained excellence and comprehensive technical, artistic, and critical work during their junior or senior year.

2020

Excellence in Interactive Technology & Development 2019-2020

  • Received an award from the Digital Technology and Culture Program for the Seattle Pops website redesign project, which recognizes students who explores the principles of web design, coding, information architecture, and usability in a global cultural context.

Peer Reviewed Publications

2022

Hybrid classroom approach: Virtual and live field data integration

  • Schlosser, W., Aumell, A., Kilkenny, M. (2022). Hybrid classroom approach: Virtual and live field data integration. Journal of Natural Sciences Education. https://doi.org/10.1002/nse2.20094

2022

Digital wellness and fitness tools for students with disabilities

  • McMahon, D., & McMahon, A. K., Abrams, K., Anglin, M., Wilds, K., & Aumell, A. (2022). Digital wellness and fitness tools for students with disabilities. Journal of Special Education Technology. https://doi.org/10.1177/01626434221094795

Volunteer Experience

2022

Whitman County Historical Society

  • Created 360° tours of Whitman County historical society sites to allow people to virtually visit the sites.
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Kamiak Butte VR

App Development

My Role

Kamiak Butte VR is an interactive educational project I started during my undergraduate and graduate studies at Washington State University. It was created in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the transition to distance learning. The project allows students to virtually explore and learn about Kamiak Butte County Park in a 360° view. I used various software tools like Adobe Creative Suite, Figma, Maya, Unity, and 3DVista to develop the program, incorporating student feedback to continually improve it.
 
Working with a diverse team of professors and students, we secured two technology grants and raised $44,550 to further enhance Kamiak Butte VR. The software has been successfully integrated into the Natural Resource Ecology course curriculum for six semesters, benefiting over 500 students, and it continues to be used alongside the physical field trip to Kamiak Butte.
 

Project Type

Master’s Thesis Work

Deliverables

VR Application, WebGL App

Tools Used

Adobe Photoshop, Unity, 3D Maya, Figma, Adobe Premire Pro, Adobe Illastrator

Itartiatve Design Driven by Research

My master’s thesis focused on the use of the Kamiak Butte VR alongside the physical field trip in the Natural Resource Ecology course.

The results from the research study showed students valued the hybrid field trip and believed the activities supported their ability to learn about the ecology at Kamiak Butte. 

I also collected data on students’ use of the software which helped me further develop the product for students. 

User Interface Design

User Interface Design

"I really liked it, it was easy to use and interesting to work. I would recommend at the start with the options menu if under each option such as under 'wildlife' it could say what is contained within it, such as 'white-tailed deer' etc to save time trying to find what you are looking for, other than that a really fun, interactive site."

"I really liked it, it was easy to use and interesting to work. I would recommend at the start with the options menu if under each option such as under 'wildlife' it could say what is contained within it, such as 'white-tailed deer' etc to save time trying to find what you are looking for, other than that a really fun, interactive site."

Ph.D. student preparing drone for a flight.

Developed & Curated E-Learning Content with User Input

My master’s thesis focused on the use of the Kamiak Butte VR alongside the physical field trip in the Natural Resource Ecology course.

The results from the research study showed students valued the hybrid field trip and believed the activities supported their ability to learn about the ecology at Kamiak Butte. 

I also collected data on students’ use of the software which helped me further develop the product for students. 

"I really liked it, it was easy to use and interesting to work. I would recommend at the start with the options menu if under each option such as under 'wildlife' it could say what is contained within it, such as 'white-tailed deer' etc to save time trying to find what you are looking for, other than that a really fun, interactive site."

UI Labels & Interactions Improvements

My master’s thesis focused on the use of the Kamiak Butte VR alongside the physical field trip in the Natural Resource Ecology course.

The results from the research study showed students valued the hybrid field trip and believed the activities supported their ability to learn about the ecology at Kamiak Butte. 

I also collected data on students’ use of the software which helped me further develop the product for students. 

"I really liked it, it was easy to use and interesting to work. I would recommend at the start with the options menu if under each option such as under 'wildlife' it could say what is contained within it, such as 'white-tailed deer' etc to save time trying to find what you are looking for, other than that a really fun, interactive site."

Prototyping Real World UI

My master’s thesis focused on the use of the Kamiak Butte VR alongside the physical field trip in the Natural Resource Ecology course.

The results from the research study showed students valued the hybrid field trip and believed the activities supported their ability to learn about the ecology at Kamiak Butte. 

I also collected data on students’ use of the software which helped me further develop the product for students. 

"I really liked it, it was easy to use and interesting to work. I would recommend at the start with the options menu if under each option such as under 'wildlife' it could say what is contained within it, such as 'white-tailed deer' etc to save time trying to find what you are looking for, other than that a really fun, interactive site."

Information Architecture & Level Design

Information Architecture was edited to better reflect the brand and offer visitors more to interact with on the site. 

"I really liked it, it was easy to use and interesting to work. I would recommend at the start with the options menu if under each option such as under 'wildlife' it could say what is contained within it, such as 'white-tailed deer' etc to save time trying to find what you are looking for, other than that a really fun, interactive site."

Anthropogenic Influence

Chief Kamiakin, Early Observations, Indigenous People, Ski Area, Time Line, Whitman County Parks & Rec, Wildfire

Birds

Clark’s Nutcracker, Hairy Woodpecker, Mountain Chickadee, Northern Harrier, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Spotted Tawhee, Vesper Sparrow, Western Red-tailed Hawk 

Geologic Foundations

Quartzite

Insects

Ashy Digger Bee, Bicolored Carpenter Ant, Crackling Forest Grasshopper, Seven-spotted Lady Beetle, Variegated Meadowhawk

Seasonal Change

North Aspect, South Aspect 

Tree Species

Douglas-fir, Ponderosa Pine, Norway Maple, Western Larch, Variable Radius Plot Sample

Understory Species

North 

Baldhip Rose, Ghost Pipe, Glacier Lily, Heartleaf Arnica, Longlead Fleabane, Mallow-leaf Ninebark, Ocean Spray, Tall Ragwort

South 

Acute Paintbrush, Arrowleaf Balsamroot, Grasswidow, Hairy Vetch, Large-flower Clarkia, Scarlet Gilia, Upland Larkspur, Western Blue Flag 

Wildlife Populations

Red Fox, Coyote, Merriam’s Wild Turkey, Rocky Mountain Elk, Shirasi Moose, Mule Deer, North American Porcupine, White-tailed Deer, 

Collaberative Effort

Received an award from the Digital Technology and Culture Program for the Seattle Pops website redesign project, which recognizes students who explores the principles of web design, coding, information architecture, and usability in a global cultural context.

dr-bill-camera
Dr. Bill hanging a camera trap.
Ph.D. student preparing drone for a flight.
Undergraduate students collecting data on the south aspect of the butte.
Undergradute Student, Mason Maron, capturing high quality audio at the butte.

Award Winning Design

Received an award from the Digital Technology and Culture Program for the Seattle Pops website redesign project, which recognizes students who explores the principles of web design, coding, information architecture, and usability in a global cultural context.

Distinguished Scholar 2020-2021

Results

The owner of Seattle Pops loved the website redesign and implemented my website design into their own hosting service.

After I completed the project, the Digital Technology and Culture program at WSU gave me the Excellence in Interactive Technology and Development award for my project with Seattle Pops. Watch the award video on this page to learn more about the project and award.

Along with the award, the DTC Department at WSU also wrote an article on their website that showcased my work with Seattle Pops. Click here to read the article. 

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Seattle Pops

Web Design

My Role

Seattle Pops is a popsicle store in Seattle, Washington where I worked throughout my undergraduate degree. In the Fall of 2019, I redesigned the Seattle Pops website for a course at Washington State University called Multimedia Authoring.

Throughout the course, I learn about UI/UX design, digital accessibility, and coding. The website encompasses a complete redesign of every webpage, including a new menu structure, the integration of an online store, and enhanced branding and design throughout the site.

Project Type

Freelance

Deliverables

Website UI

New Menu

Tools Used

Wordpress

Adobe Photoshop

HTML

CSS

Colors & Typography

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Typograghy

ABC Diatype

Mint

Mint

Mint

Information Architecture

Information Architecture was edited to better reflect the brand and offer visitors more to interact with on the site. 

Old

Flavors

Locations

Catering

Our Story

Contact Us

Online Shop

New

Flavors

Locations

Catering

Our Story

Contact Us

Online Shop

Prototypes

Received an award from the Digital Technology and Culture Program for the Seattle Pops website redesign project, which recognizes students who explores the principles of web design, coding, information architecture, and usability in a global cultural context.

Old Website

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.

New Website

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.

Award Winning Design

Received an award from the Digital Technology and Culture Program for the Seattle Pops website redesign project, which recognizes students who explores the principles of web design, coding, information architecture, and usability in a global cultural context.

Results

The owner of Seattle Pops loved the website redesign and implemented my website design into their own hosting service.

After I completed the project, the Digital Technology and Culture program at WSU gave me the Excellence in Interactive Technology and Development award for my project with Seattle Pops. Watch the award video on this page to learn more about the project and award.

Along with the award, the DTC Department at WSU also wrote an article on their website that showcased my work with Seattle Pops. Click here to read the article. 

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.