We hire awesome people

Dave Jent is Associate Vice President of Networks for Indiana University, leading the efforts of the GlobalNOC. Dave also serves as executive director of I-Light and the Indiana GigaPoP.

Ed Balas manages the software used by the GlobalNOC and its partners to monitor, measure, document, design, and provision networks. He also leads a team of software engineers who work to improve network management and control.

Balas has held several technical and leadership positions throughout his 14-year professional career, including roles at a Tier 1 Internet Service Provider and a network management startup. He places consistent focus on finding ways to make large-scale advanced networks more robust and efficient. Additional interests include automation of network management, network visualization, cartography, computer security, and Software-Defined Networking/OpenFlow.

Balas has a bachelor's degree in computer science and psychology from Saint Joseph’s College. He enjoys spending his free time with family and dabbling in the zymurgical arts.

Mike Booher manages the day-to-day operations of the GlobalNOC Service Desk, where he leads a team of 21 support technicians. The Service Desk team supports networks with front-line monitoring, analysis, evaluation, and tracking operations of network systems. It also participates in project planning efforts such as new project turn-ups.

Booher has more than 25 years experience managing data center operations and installing/maintaining networks. He joined the GlobalNOC from LightBound/IQuest Internet, where he spent 10 years developing and managing the company's 24x7x365 network operations center as its general manager and operations director.

Booher is a veteran of the United States Navy, and holds a degree from Purdue University in electrical engineering and technology.

Marianne Chitwood leads the Operations team, which runs the GlobalNOC Service Desk. Chitwood has more than 30 years experience working with all aspects of voice and data networks. This strong foundation in network and project management allows her to lead technical staff and manage complex design, installation, and support projects.

Chitwood also loves to cook and entertain friends – talents greatly appreciated by her husband, children, and fellow IU football tailgaters.

Matthew Davy is director of InCNTRE and Indiana University’s chief network architect. Before coming to Indiana University (IU) in 1999, he served as a network engineer for Tier 1 Internet Service Providers focused primarily on backbone traffic engineering. Davy has spent the last twelve years providing leadership in the design and management of large-scale, advanced R&E networks. At IU, he is responsible for the long-term design and planning of the university’s enterprise network, which includes over 100,000 data connections across eight campuses. Recently he has focused on supporting network research related to software-defined networking and building collaborations among the faculty, students, and IT staff who support R&E networks.

Shannon Dockter leads the GlobalNOC's Project Management efforts, focusing on creating self-sustaining processes that suit the organization’s goals and needs.

Dockter holds a bachelor's degree from Ball State University and Project Management Professional certification from the Project Management Institute (PMI). She is also a member of PMI and its central Indiana chapter.

Jay Duncan joined the GlobalNOC at its inception in 1997. He has served in various functions over the last 14 years, including service desk operator, service desk supervisor, and network engineer. Duncan received his bachelor's degree in English and telecommunications from IU in 1998.

Luke Fowler leads two teams of 20 Systems and Software Engineers responsible for the architecture, design, development, and maintenance of the GlobalNOC's network measurement, management, and monitoring systems. He is also the co-principal investigator on the GENI Meta Operations Center (GMOC) project. GMOC is an effort to define and implement operational data sharing systems and procedures for GENI.

Fowler has over 15 years experience building Internet systems, and holds a bachelor's degree in computer science from Indiana University.

Jon-Paul Herron leads the GlobalNOC's two teams of Network Engineers, focusing on advanced network troubleshooting, strategic planning, and architecture. He has more than 14 years experience in WAN networking for industry and research and education (R&E), with 10 spent aiding the GlobalNOC's development.

Herron is also Principal Investigator for two projects in the National Science Foundation's GENI program – the GENI Meta-Operations Center (GMOC) and the Midwest OpenFlow Exchange Initiative (MOXI). GMOC focuses on developing a federated operational model for network research, while MOXI works to build a new high-speed R&E regional OpenFlow network research infrastructure throughout the Midwest.

In his spare time, Herron is an occasional builder of furniture – a pursuit tolerated by his understanding wife and son.

Steve Peck oversees the GlobalNOC's contractual responsibilities, provides high-level support and assurance for its customers, and develops new business opportunities. He has 20 years experience in network operations and customer relations, with strong expertise in operational best practices and new NOC development.

Peck is also an avid record collector and music fan.

David Ripley manages the Systems Engineering team, which focuses on the design, testing, deployment, and operation of GlobalNOC’s network measurement and monitoring systems.

Prior to joining the GlobalNOC, Ripley served as a researcher and systems integration specialist at Indiana University’s Center for Advanced Cybersecurity Research (CACR). While at CACR, Ripley developed systems for regional, national, and global-scale network protection, data analysis, and performance evaluation.

Ripley's 20-year career in professional programming and systems administration started at Pennsylvania State University's Department of Meteorology, where he conducted research and developed numerical models of land surface processes. Ripley holds degrees from Imperial College, University of London, and the University of Edinburgh.

Jim Williams leads Indiana University's International Networking effort. These efforts include his work as principal investigator for two NSF awards from the International Research Network Connection (IRNC) program: the America Connects Europe (ACE) project which connects the advanced research networks of the US to those of Europe, and TransPac3, which does the same for the research networks of Asia.