Shai Sachs has considerable experience developing web applications, and managing web development projects. Shai manages all of the development and project management work for Welcoming Websites. Shai's key skills include PHP/MySQL and J2EE development, the Rails framework, the Drupal content management system, digital library systems, and metadata standards and transport systems. Shai has contributed two modules and a variety of bug fixes to the Drupal community, and is developing the Welcoming Websites Wizard, a Drupal installation profile built for Unitarian Universalist churches.
As a lead developer for Welcoming Websites, Shai has implemented a wide variety of features for liberal religious websites, including integration with e-commerce; membership import and members-only features; complex content migration; group workspaces; online event registration; and calendar systems. Shai’s work includes the websites for the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, the Unitarian Universalist Ministers Association, the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Fairfax, VA, the Universalist Unitarian Church of Riverside, CA, and the First Parish in Cambridge, Unitarian Universalist.
From 2003 to 2007, Shai worked as the Director of Research and Development at Isovera, Inc. and Akaza Research, LLC. Shai's experiences at those companies include two open source projects: the Dewey digital library cataloging system, developed for a PHP/MySQL platform, and the OpenClinica clinical trials data management system, developed for a Java J2EE/PostgreSQL platform. Other significant experiences include the development and management of a members bill payment system for the Harvard Club of Boston, a health news review system for the Foundation for Informed Medical Decision Making, a number of scientific digital libraries including BiosciEdNet and EcoEdNet.
Shai received an M.S. in Computer Science in 2003 from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and an A.B. in Computer Science, magna cum laude with highest honors, in 2001 from Harvard University.
