Organizations often have a department that becomes a target of blame when problems arise. At Missouri S&T, Information Technology (IT) frequently fills this role. Employees may wish for perfect technology delivered promptly without constraints, but this ideal scenario doesn’t reflect reality. Like other departments, IT operates within limitations of policy, investment and capability. The department works with finite resources in money, personnel and time to achieve the best results possible for the institution.

IT is often viewed as an obstacle, but really, we are a group of dedicated individuals who embrace the university’s mission with a goal of enabling collective future goals.

Meet Josh Jones

Since 2017, Josh Jones has supported technology advancements at Missouri S&T, driven by his passion for empowering the university’s research community. His connection to S&T runs deeper than his role; he genuinely cares about the university’s vision to drive advancements and support discoveries that will help solve the problems of tomorrow. Josh’s interest in technology began early, at age 6, 40 miles from Rolla in Crocker, Missouri, where he would secretly take apart and try to reassemble his mother’s computer before she would return home from work. This curiosity led to a career as a system administrator specialist at S&T.

In 2012, Josh moved to Rolla with his wife, Kayla, an S&T mechanical engineering alumna. After working as a system administrator at Fort Leonard Wood, he joined S&T’s IT department to manage software systems, SAP and Canvas. By 2020, his focus shifted to high-performance computing (HPC), where he now oversees two supercomputers – The Mill at S&T and The Hellbender at the University of Missouri-Columbia. These systems support campus research by using complex computations and data processing.

Josh’s work with S&T’s supercomputing resources is essential to the university’s mission. He manages 500 servers across both systems and handles everything from hardware repairs to software updates and troubleshooting. Beyond technical duties, he values helping users solve issues. “The most rewarding part of my job is seeing that ‘light bulb’ moment for users,” he says.

He is also dedicated to making technology accessible on campus and making sure users know about available technological resources. Currently, he is creating a new Ceph cluster, a large-scale file system designed to support S&T researchers. In each project, he emphasizes reliability and user access, assisting departments without high-level computing resources.

Josh’s commitment extends beyond campus to industry events like the Supercomputing (SC) conference. He also contributes to SCINET, which sets up the event’s fiber and WiFi infrastructure. “It’s a huge opportunity for visibility in the HPC world,” he says, adding that it allows S&T to network within the industry.

Outside of work, Josh is an avid traveler. Since COVID restrictions lifted, he and Kayla have visited 13 countries, including Ireland, a favorite. He also enjoys video games, shooting sports, and spending time with their three cats: Piper, Twilight and Meow.

Photo caption: Josh and Kayla’s three cats watch turkeys from a window in their home.

Josh offers this advice for aspiring IT professionals: “It’s fun and rewarding but always be willing to learn.” With commitment to empowering the S&T research community, Josh embodies the mission of helping researchers “Go further, faster,” a slogan embraced by the research support solutions team. His expertise and dedication make him a force that drives the university’s progress and success.