Washington County native Brandon Norman serves as the Network Manager at Murdoch Developmental Center, where he uses his skills to support the technological systems of one of the state’s vital health and rehabilitation facilities.

The son of Janet and Rodney Norman, Brandon says that he has always had an interest in technology, but initially believed that his future lay in the realm of engineering.

“To be honest, I initially thought I would be going into engineering like my dad,” he says. “I had that goal until I got to college but I ended up changing it once I got to Winston.”  

After graduating Plymouth High School in 2002, Norman attended Winston-Salem State University, where he pursued a degree in computer science in lieu of engineering.

After graduating from Winston-Salem in 2007, Norman returned home to ply his skills within the familiar Washington County School system. Here, he became one of the district’s IT technicians and was a contemporary of Washington County School’s current Chief Technology Officer, Dan Smith.

“My first job after college was at Washington County Schools as an IT technician. Dan was around when I was there,” Norman reminisces. “At the time, we were pretty much in the same position but he started going into a more managerial role as time passed.”

After spending four years working within the Washington County School system, Norman transferred to Durham Technical Community College as a Network Technician. It was a move he recalls as a far more challenging posting, but one made possible by the lessons and skills he acquired back home.

“I left to work as a network technician for Durham Tech. It was a pretty big step up from working in Washington County, but fortunately, I learned a lot at my previous job,” he says. “I actually learned my networking skills while I was at Washington County. It just so happens that we had to switch over from Novell Technology back in the day to windows servers…that taught me some things…so it was an invaluable opportunity before I ever set foot in Durham.”

For the next four years, Norman would serve as a dedicated and efficient professional on Durham’s community college campus, building his skills and his knowledge along the way. Once his time at Durham had come to an end, he switched gears from the academic setting to the state healthcare area.

Specifically, Norman would join Murdoch Developmental Center as a network analyst...