Giovanni Cimolin

Implemented support for Learning Tools Interoperability (LTI) version 1.3 and LTI Advantage on the open-source Open edX platform through a pluggable Django application. In this project, I had to estimate, plan, and manage a team of developers, and implement some of the core features of the LTI specification. The project management was developed in a public Jira tracker. All of the code is open-source. The Open edX platform is the software that powers edX.org.

Public Jira tracker: https://openedx.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/COMM/pages/1545076784/BD-24+LTI+v1.3+Improvements+Advantage+Support

Implementation of customer-facing registration flow and console to manage and customize SaaS offerings of Open edX instances. When I implemented this, there was no way for clients to apply color customizations, text changes and publish them without technical intervention. The new registration flow provided a step-by-step process explaining the product and its options. The new console empowered users to make changes without having to open support requests. The project combined a new React SPA (client-facing UI), a custom Open edX theme, and changes to the in-house hosting software to allow customers to manage customizations on their own (new APIs and models in Django). The instance manager, front end, and its deployment mechanisms are fully open-source (https://github.com/open-craft/opencraft/).

LabXchange is an online learning platform that provides free access to high-quality educational resources in the sciences and related fields. Developed by Harvard University, LabXchange offers interactive content that allows users to learn at their own pace and build custom learning pathways.

I implemented features and fixes on all product areas (back end, front end, infrastructure), improving learner and educator experience, speed, and reliability.

The back end is implemented in the Django REST framework, while the front end is implemented in React. LabXchange initially relied heavily on third-party software to provide interactive content (Open edX) and discussions (Discourse). The subsequent work brought all functionality into the monolith for better reliability and developer experience.

The platform was originally hosted on AWS, initially using EKS, and then migrated to ECS to simplify operations and maintenance. All infrastructure was managed through Terraform.