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Mental DIY

Team Profiles

This section provides some details about the experience and qualifications of our members. Just click on the drop-down menus to learn more.

David Tierney (Founder, and Content Developer)

Introduction

David is passionate about mixing art and science disciplines to make tools and strategies to help people. His main areas of expertise include psychology, education, research, and communications. He has experience supporting individuals as well as academic, business, and community groups. David can be booked if anyone wants a consultation for social good causes (just email info@mentaldiy.com). You can support his social good initiatives on Patreon: patreon.com/MentalDIY

Summary of Strengths
  • Multidisciplinary communications background complemented with education and psychology training.
  • Award winning experience supporting people and groups across demographics and disciplines. This includes children, the elderly, non-native speakers, and people with disabilities.
  • A history of success for supporting fundraising and social good causes e.g., helped raise seven figure sums for climate change initiatives with 3rd level and Fortune 500 groups.
  • Expertise in research methodology, statistics, graphic design, neurodiversity, mental health, remote working, and more.
  • A support network that includes experts in business, neurodiversity, various art disciplines, education, and more.
    Education
    • M.A. in Technical Communication and E-Learning (1st Class Honours), University of Limerick (2011 - 2012). This course covered topics such as distance education, graphic design, website design, typography, report writing, interviewing skills, research, podcasting, cyber ethics, and communication strategy. Example modules: E-Learning Theories and Practices, Learning Technologies, Instructional Design.
    • B.A. in Psychology and English Literature, Mary Immaculate College (2006 - 2010). Only students in the top percentile of the course in first year could keep psychology on as a subject choice. Example modules: Poetry and Prose, High English Romanticism, Literary Modernism, Organisational Psychology, Social Psychology, Abnormal Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, and Group Dynamics.

      Erasmus course details, Trinity College (now called University of Wales Trinity Saint David), Wales: This included modules in 1) Adolescence, 2) Belief, Behaviour and Attitudes, and 3) Advanced Creative Writing (given a 1st grade with 20 extra European Credit Transfer points awarded for finishing two writing semesters (with more than three semesters worth of material) within one semester.
    • Extracurricular modules and certificates in multiple areas such as writing, research, statistics, and psychology (did excess of 4 years’ worth of level 10 modules and workshops in less than a year and a half), suicide intervention, fire safety, nutrition, media, and more.
    • Software Skills
      Graphic design and presentation       software such as Photoshop and Captivate.
      Research software       such as MediaLab, SPSS, JASP, and Questback.
      General awareness of databases       for reference materials (e.g., Unsplash.com, Onetonline.org) as well as online tools (e.g., Weavesilk, Photopea, Calendly).
    Volunteering
    • Founder of Mental DIY. My home community has twice the national rate of suicide in a country with some of the highest rates of mental health problems in Europe. Having done intervention work in the community I know how badly our mental health services need support. My goal with developing Mental DIY is to boost accessability, and to automate suppport where possible in an effort to free up resources desperately needed elsewhere.
    • Volunteer (2021 - 2022): Provided research, competition judging, interventions, funding, and networking for mental health advocates and good causes. This includes radio/newspaper appearances, charity director for research and ethics, and supporting political efforts to increase the mental health budget for Ireland.
    • Multiple committee positions (2006 - 2017) for different 3rd level clubs and societies e.g., debate, psychology, literary society, art society, and more. Roles included chairperson, health and safety officer, public relation officer, treasurer, and general advisor. These positions helped to develop skills in areas such as group management, administration, budgeting, event management, workshop development, advertising and graphic design, fundraising, and general organisation capabilities. Example initiatives include:
      •    creating a science/arts comedy conference. This taught critical thinking and knowledge by using academic arguments for nonsensical ideas.
      •    Art wall full of happiness sentiments with the university Arts Officer.
      •    Researching and giving mental health talks to promote happiness.
      •    Film nights with mental health themed films for psychology society.
      •    Networking diverse groups to promote literature e.g., nostalgia event with psychology, games, and literary society, or securing funding for literature-based games with games and literary society, or literary and drama society to get writing work performed for local tours with props and acters.

      My work was rewarded with the Student Making a Difference Award, the Gold President’s Volunteer Award, the Presidents Volunteer Award for Outstanding Achievement, Most Improved Society, and multiple writing awards. During this time, I helped people across demographics and disciplines including students with disabilities.
      I supported various charities and good causes e.g., learning material development, volunteer recruitment with groups such as Limerick Gateway to Education, experimental literacy development project for children, networking, research, and communication design advice for international environmental project.
    • Milford Care Centre Volunteer (Hospice), Limerick (2009). Example duties included assisting occupational therapy as well as I.T. and secretarial tasks for the fundraising office.
    Work History
    • Career Coach (contract work), Slí Nua Careers (2022- 2023). This role mainly involves editing and writing for CVs, LinkedIn profiles, and applications. Additional responsibilities include consultation for data analysis, networking, and social good reach.
    • Consultant and artist for Big Crumb Entertainment Studio (2020 - 2021).
      •    Graphic design and social media support.
      •    Some of my work was animated by an international remote working team.
    • Behaviour Scientist (2016 - 2020), Cloud Assist (Gold Microsoft Partner). This involved multidisciplinary research design and implementation, graphic design, and assistance with development for business, fundraising, and networking strategy. I helped network with groups like Trinity and National College of Ireland. We were awarded funding by various groups (e.g., Limerick City Council, Science Foundation Ireland) up to seven figure sums. The global impact project is focused on attitudes and behaviours in relation to onlineness, travel, disability access, and social good business culture development. This work provided access to exclusive workshops, talks, and events such as the Microsoft Partners Teams Event. Example topics: AI and machine learning, virutal presence units (robots that facilitate remote working), climate change, city council governance.
    • Educator and Special Needs Supporter, University of Limerick (2013 - 2017). This included working as 3rd level tutor, one to one learning support assistant for students with disabilities, lab assistant for statistics classes, invigilation for studdents with disabilities, and learning workshop developer.
    • Other work examples: Charity intervention work, promoter for local business (this involved creating funny rhymes for advertisement), editor for mostly non-native speakers in various areas, IT and advertisement internship at Paul Fraser Collectibles in Bristol, acted as assistant to a lecturer doing secretarial work, library attendant, one to one and group tutoring for 2nd and 3rd level students, part time editing and recruitment support for various disciplines and business purposes.
    Art Style and Goals

    Creative Writing Outline
    I enjoy poetry, prose, and novel writing. I am comfortable with a wide variety of writing styles across genres. I enjoy experimenting with new formats. For instance, my ‘Tornado’ poetry can be read in multiple directions. This is an attempt to artistically articulate the challenges of reading with a disability such as dyslexia. Ignoring the title, the poem is a Limerick both vertically and horizontally. There are also diagonal readings. Words can be changed depending on how they’re read e.g., not + he = naughty:

    Sample Tornado Dave Tierrney

    Visual Goals
    I have experience using software to generate images from scratch, as well as photomanipulations. I have taught myself origami to make pop-up books. My network includes art experts across art disciplines. With their guidance I am ambitious to develop my illustration skills to explore what forms of visual art can best complement my written work. This includes typography, map making, story art, cover art, and page frames.

    Pen is mightier than the sword

    Content Development Goals
    My current writing objectives are focused on:
    •    Empowerment stories and poems. This work focuses on encouraging morality and positivity with content being informed by education and psychology theory.
    •    Educational works. This includes poems and short stories that sneak in educational content without being preachy.
    •    Expression works to describe forms of neurodiversity, and to discourage stigma.
    •    Commentary for social good issues.
    •    Entertainment including comedy to promote happiness.
    My network includes experts across contexts and disciplines to provide feedback to ensure quality for both art and informational content.

    Media Development Goals
    I have experience with public speaking in a variety of academic, business, and community contexts. I wish to use my speaking skills for developing audio and video content. This includes collaboration with other artists for complementary content e.g., dance performance for poetry reading.

    Science and Art
    A long term goal is to scientifically evaluate the impact of my artwork including emotional impact, mental health impact, and social good behaviour change.

    Adam Doherty (IT Support)

    Introduction

    Adam has a wide range of IT and coding skills especially in the areas of programming and troubleshooting. His work has supported areas such as cancer research, administration, project management, and data analysis. He has experience teaching and managing different age groups in education, volunteering, and business contexts. LinkedIn profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/adam-doherty-431335146 Github: https://github.com/AdamD115114

    Education
    • Masters of Computer Science (2021 - 2023), University Of Limerick, Ireland (funded by the UL Cancer network).
      This action-based translational research is based on the production of proof of concepts for multiple projects
      with a larger goal of providing a UL cancer portal for the University. Example projects include:
      - Autonomous detection and referral system for patients with Multiple Myeloma
      - A Misinformation veracity evaluation system for cancer information
    • Bachelor of Science in Computer Games Development (2014 - 2020), University Of Limerick, Ireland.
      As well as covering theory, practice of software development, and Agile development methodologies, this course has enhanced my research methodology, academic writing, and presentation skills. Examples of programming languages include JavaScript, Java, C, SQL, and R. Examples of core modules covered include:
      - Software Design and Architecture
      - Project Management and Practice
      - Software Quality
    Work History
    • Software Developer (2022 - 2023), Safety Manager Project, EcoOnline AS.
      I am responsible for developing and implementing software solutions. Example duties:
      - Carrying out software maintenance work for the Environmental Health & Safety platform
      - Feature development
      - Framework and language version upgrading
      - Running queries and audits
    • Quality Assurance Specialist (2020 - 2022), Quality Assurance Team, Capita.
      Responsibilities included:
      - Agent call Analytics
      - Training material generation
      - Quality Assurance and Process Alignment
    • Senior Administrator, Second Line Fault Management, Arise Europe.
      This role involved:
      - Fault Pattern Analysis
      - Real Time Management Outage Notification
      - KPI and metric Analysis
      - providing consultation for the AI and Automation team on a number of projects
      - acting as Project Lead for an in-house BAT completed on new systems being introduced to
      the company.
    Volunteering
    • Web development advisor (2016), UL Reach, University of Limerick. Coded forms and assist with the general development of a creative arts project that aims to raise awareness for mental health issues.
    • Postgraduate Research Assistant (2016), University of Limerick. Typical duties included:
      - Social media advertisement and participant recruitment
      - Informing participants of their rights and collecting questionnaire
    • ‘Head Coach’ for the UL Parkour Club (2015 - 2016). It was my responsibility to ensure all training’s were designed with a structured approach to the sport. I planned custom progressions for each member to tailor a plan for their ability and coordinate with our group of coaches to ratio coaches to students appropriately.
    • Assistant gymnastics coach working with children of all ranges. Responsibilities included supervision, equipment maintenance, and assisting with warm-up exercises during the year and at annual camps.
    Technologies
    • Frontend: Vuejs, Angular
    • Backend: Java, Java2EE, PHP, Dart, C#,Python
    • Database: Postgres, MySQL, SQL Server, MongoBD, Firebase
    • Mobile: Flutter, Swift, SOTI ONE platform
    • Model Driven: DIME2, DIME, Dywa Framework
    • Methodologies: OOD, XMDD, MDD, XP
    • Virtualization: Docker, kubernetes
    • Other: GitHub, GitLab, LATEX, CI/CD pipeline, BitBucket, Jira, Markdown, Microsoft Office
    • Development Approach: Scrum Management, Agile, Reverse Waterfall
    Additional Information

    My main area of personal interest currently is in web-based application development. During my time at the University of Limerick, I started to gain an understanding of web-based development and began working on home projects of this nature. I work on my Raspberry Pi cluster as a home server for IoT automation projects and Docker services. I am an avid chess player and I was a former teacher for the Games Society at the University.

    Mindy Pillow (Journalist, Editor, and Marketing Professional)

    Introduction

    Mindy has extensive experience when it comes to multimedia projects and journalism. This includes supporting areas such as healthcare, neurodiverse equity, and business. Her diverse range of skills and experiences include: search engine optimisation, advertising, online blogs, research documents, developing articles, administration, and editing. LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mpillow 

    Education
    • Bachelor of Science in Advertising and Business Foundations, University of Texas, Austin (2005 - 2008).
      In addition to research and presentation skills, this course covered topics such as marketing, social media, and communication theory.

      Extracurricular      : Member of Texas Advertising Group. This student led organisation is aimed at helping members for a professional network and to support the development of skills related to advertising.
    • Bachelor of Journalism and Multimedia, University of Texas, Austin (2005 - 2008). Topics covered include areas such as research methodology, media, writing, and reporting.
    • Austin Community College (2002 - 2005)
    Work History
    • SEO and Marketing Consultant, Nehmedia, Inc., Austin, Texas (2013 - 2017)
    • Reporter/Researcher, Credentials Media, Austin, Texas (2013 - 2014)
    • Editor and Marketing Analyst, Kinnser Software, Rollingwood, Texas (2009 - 2012).
      - Set up and managed search marketing campaign for one of the fastest software companies in the country (nc. 500)
      -Built and managed Kinnser's undustry leading Home Health blog
      - Co-ordinated with industry experts to publish articles every week.
      - Managed company social media profiles including Facebook, Youtube, and LinkedIn.
      -Created and distributed customer newsletters.
      -Drafted press releases, customer case studies, white paper, and ad copy for various offline and online marketing initiatives.
    • Natural Search Specialist, Apogee Search, Austin, Texas (2008 - 2009).
      - Set up and maintained search campaigns for a diverse client roster.
      - Leveraged knowledge of search engine algorithms, proven optimization and link development techniques, Google Analytics tools, and a deep expertise in statistical evaluation.
      - Played a vital role in the development of Apogee’s new social media service offering: created service plans, templates, and sales documents.
      - Recommended the concept for the successfully viral AK-39 iKey YouTube video in September 2009.
      - Built an aggressive campaign for Alert Logic, consistently placing the website above-the-fold in Google for the competitive term, Log Management (ultimately outranking its competitor, LogLogic.com in the top 3 spot). Increased Natural Search leads by 70% from Q2 2008 to Q2 2009.
      - Developed several generic “best practice” and process documents
      - Drafted the comprehensive Natural Search training manual used by Apogee Search for the PBS training engagement and currently, for all other training/consulting engagements. Conducted training session for Tri-Star Electronics in Feb 2009.
      - Two-time guest speaker in the UT Graduate School of Journalism on Search Marketing for Multimedia Journalists
    • Online Advertising Intern, Austin, Texas (2007 - 2008).
      - Assisted Natural and Paid Search analysts with multiple campaigns.
      - Performed keyword research, website analysis, and competitive research for various clients.
      - Increasingly acquired more responsibilities and transitioned from intern to full-time employee after graduation
    • Marketing Communications Intern, Vison Web, Austin, Texas (2008).
      - Executed channel marketing efforts, direct mail campaigns and sales promotions.
      - Prepared industry trade show materials, coordinated event calendars and scheduled eyecare provider webinars.
      - Contributed to the development of marketing collateral such as brochures, job stuffers, and introductory letters.
      - Created and edited copy for advertising, sales promotions and email blasts.
      - Researched feature article topics and collaborated with departments to write and edit the Spotlight monthly newsletter.
      - Represented VisionWeb at the Texas Optometric Association Convention and devised metrics to maximize event ROI.
      - Conducted extensive secondary research to understand eyecare providers’ Internet behavior. Identified areas of improvement for the company website, including web analytics solutions to track online visitor behavior.
      - Developed an informative and comprehensive plan to implement VisionWeb’s future natural and paid search campaigns.
    • Office Manager, Flint Estate Builders, Austin, Texas (2002 - 2007).
      - Provided administrative and managerial support to the President and Vice President of a custom home building company. Assisted with the development of the company website.
    Brian Hayes (Mental Health Advocate and Advertisement Support)

    Introduction

    Brian Hayes has experience with:
    - contacting and meeting with political figures.
    - making videos to advertise issues such as drugs, mental health support services, poverty, corruption, and homelessness.
    - providing support to others over social media.
    - interviews with media outlets such as newspaper, radio, and social media.
    - supporting specific mental health initiatives and campaigns.

    Brian Hayes (on the right) supporting mental health outside the Dáil.

    Get in contact to get involved: info@mentaldiy.com