Overview
Developed a custom PHP and MySQL integration for Valdosta State University’s Campus Directory, providing a searchable database of faculty and staff contact information.
The solution retrieves employee records maintained within Cascade Server, the university’s content management system, and stores them in MySQL for efficient access through the public-facing directory.
The Challenge
Campus departments needed a way to maintain faculty and staff contact information while ensuring that website visitors could easily search for university employees.
Departmental administrators already managed content through Cascade Server, but the public-facing directory required an efficient method for retrieving and searching employee information.
A solution was needed to connect the existing content management workflow with a database-driven search interface without requiring departments to maintain duplicate records.
The Solution
Developed a PHP script that retrieves faculty and staff records from Cascade Server and stores the information in a MySQL database.
Departmental administrators could continue creating, reading, updating, and deleting employee records within the existing CMS, while the Campus Directory used the MySQL database to provide searchable contact information to website visitors.
Continued maintaining and enhancing the integration, database, and related functionality throughout my tenure at Valdosta State University.
Technical Implementation
The application included five primary components:
- CMS integration: Developed a PHP script to retrieve faculty and staff records maintained within Cascade Server.
- Data processing: Processed the retrieved employee information for storage in a separate database.
- MySQL database: Stored employee records in MySQL to support efficient retrieval by the public-facing directory.
- Directory search: Connected the website’s search functionality to the database, allowing visitors to locate faculty and staff contact information.
- Ongoing enhancements: Updated the PHP integration, database, and custom features as university requirements evolved.
Outcome
Delivered a database-driven Campus Directory that connected departmental content management within Cascade Server to a searchable public-facing employee directory.
The integration allowed administrators to maintain faculty and staff records through their existing CMS while providing website visitors with access to campus contact information.
The application continued to receive enhancements during my tenure at Valdosta State University. Although the website has since been redesigned, portions of my original implementation appear to remain in use. I am no longer responsible for its maintenance.