Mario N. Garza

garza@vt.edu

Specialties:

Geospatial Analysis
Design and User Experience
Meteorology/Climatological data
CRM Management

I joined CGIT upon graduating in 2016 as a geocoder for the still ongoing DMV project while working full-time in a state agency. In 2021, I was hired as a full-time faculty member and within a year have done work for the Commonwealth Connection, DMV Geocoding tool redesign, Virginia State Police Crash Analysis tool, and Department of Veterans Services CMS projects.

Before starting school in 2010, I had worked in the IT industry for several years before going back to school to study Meteorology and Geography. After finding my passion in Geospatial Information Systems (GIS), I went for my Master of Science in Geography studying the spread of invasive insects and tree resistance to those insects with climatological variations. This utilized GIS data modeling and statistical modeling in my analyses.

Currently, I am studying UX design theory in hopes to increase the user experience and showcase the powerful tools that CGIT develops into a beautiful and easy to use experience. As a geographer, I understand how important it is to designs maps to be easy to read and use, software and website design are just another form of cartography to me. I am currently working on a Google UX Design Professional Certificate. I am also studying new GIS technologies and automation/scripting, artifical intelligence, animation, and video game design.