Cloud Engineer

Education Analytics is a non-profit organization that strives to deliver sophisticated, research-informed analytics to educators and school administrators to support their work in improving student outcomes. Cloud engineers at EA enable this mission by architecting, administering, and maintaining the infrastructure that powers our efforts to get information to educators at the right time for them to take action to improve student outcomes.

We are looking for an experienced cloud engineer to join our Cloud Engineering team. The ideal candidate would have previous experience working with production and enterprise applications using AWS technologies. In this role, you will have a chance to shape the future of education technology by building and deploying data tools using open standards. You can learn more about the kind of work our team does in these links on our website:

• Day in the Life of a Cloud Engineer at EA: https://www.edanalytics.org/blog/day-in-the-life-q-a-with-cloud-engineer-ii-megan-nash
• StartingBlocks and Lego: Building a grounded approach to data modernization: https://www.edanalytics.org/blog/startingblocks-and-lego-building-a-grounded-approach-to-data-modernization
• StartingBlocks OSS documentation and code: https://github.com/edanalytics/startingblocks_oss

Experience and Qualifications for this role:

Cloud & Server:

• AWS, Linux, and web server administration
• In depth understanding of DNS and various record types
• In depth knowledge of cloud networking including VPCs, Subnets, ACLs and request routing
• Hands-on experience writing IaC to deploy and manage cloud resources
• Hands-on experience writing CloudFormation is a plus
• Experience with serverless tools like AWS Lambda, DynamoDB or Aurora Serverless is a plus
• Experience with Elastic Beanstalk/ECS is a plus

Programming & Automation:

• Proficient in Python and/or Bash scripting
• Proficient in GitHub or similar git based version control system
• Proficient with Docker
• Proficient in SQL
• Experience with GitHub Actions is a plus
• Experience with CodePipeline is a plus

Security & Access Management:

• Experience instating security best practices in a cloud environment
• Experience with SSO setups using SAML, OAuth2 or OpenID Connect
• Proficient with IAM role and policy definitions
• Familiarity with AWS Organizations is a plus
• Familiarity with Auth0 is a plus

Problem-Solving & Communication:

• Strong troubleshooting skills in distributed systems
• Able to work independently and with a team
• Excellent attention to detail with thoughtful proaction
• Willing to collaborate on architecture discussions
• Ability to communicate complex technical ideas to various different audiences
• Ability to prioritize and self-direct effort to meet deadlines
• Strong sense of ownership and responsibility for quality of work
• Strong sense of understanding for when to escalate issues

Certifications (Optional):

• AWS Certifications and/or Linux Admin Certifications are a plus

Job duties and responsibilities

• Lead development of features using IaC and support architecture conversations
• Automate deployments with IaC to ensure efficient and consistent cloud infrastructure
• Maintain cloud-hosted environments
• Develop, maintain, and scale CI/CD pipelines
• Ensure the availability, scalability, and security of cloud-based services
• Curate roles and policies for resource access in AWS
• Monitor and optimize cloud resource utilization and costs
• Manage domain names, DNS, and connectivity to external services
• Configure and optimize virtual networks, subnets, and routing within cloud environments
• Monitor deployments and troubleshoot infrastructure and application issues
• Own and support aspects of AWS Organizations administration
• Research tools and technologies to enhance the development stack
• Create and maintain scripted tooling for seamless task automation
• Develop and update technical documentation
• Provide second- and third-level support for product implementations
• Engage in pair programming, code reviews, and mentorship of other engineers

What to expect in the hiring process

1. Hiring team reviews resumes, cover letters, and application question responses.
2. Selected candidates are invited to a 30-minute Zoom with two team members
3. Selected candidates are sent a technical skills project to complete on their own, and have a meeting to review when the project is completed.
4. Selected candidates are invited for a full day final interview (in person in our downtown Madison office or virtual). This interview will include a discussion of the technical skills project, an opportunity to meet the team, and to learn more about Education Analytics & the role.

Additional details

Compensation and Benefits

The salary for the Cloud Engineer position is $90,000-120,000/year, based on experience. EA also has a generous benefits package including:

• A 12% employee salary contribution from EA to your 401k retirement plan
• An additional 3% salary deferral match by EA to your 401k

1. 5 days of paid vacation annually + sick paid time off that accumulates per pay period

• 9 paid holidays of your choosing
• 93% of health insurance premium paid for by EA
• Paid parental leave (if eligibility requirements are met)

EA’s primary location is in downtown Madison, WI, on Capitol Square. Applicants who live in the area, or are interested in moving here, can work onsite/hybrid alongside other members of the EA team. We are also open to remote candidates for this position.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Education Analytics is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.