Shelby County Courthouse welcomes new IT Director

 SHELBY COUNTY — The Shelby Courthouse welcomes Dunlap native Austin Staley as the new IT Director.
 Staley’s interest in computers began when he was young when he would take computers apart and try to put them back together.
 “Nine times out of 10, it didn’t work when I put them back together, but that kind of sparked my interest a little bit, and ever since then, I’ve been very interested in how they actually work, what doesn’t work and trial and error type learning,” Staley said.  “It’s more hands-on.”
 Staley started his IT career by joining the military after graduating from high school in Dunlap. A majority of Staley’s technology skills and background came from his time in the military.
“I chose my job wisely based upon my interests, and my interests were computers,” Staley said. “When I went into the recruiter’s office, I told him that I wanted something that involves computers, and luckily enough, there was actually a bonus that they gave me for taking that job.”
Staley started working at Visual Edge Technology for five years following his time in the military. After that, he started to work with LightBox Systems of Western Iowa in August 2022. During his time there, he worked on a number of technology systems, from servers to computers to phones.
Staley recently left LightBox Systems to start his new job at the Shelby County Courthouse. One of his main goals is to get the Courthouse technology systems to be more manageable and to build a relationship with the other county employees.
“The most important part to me is having that relationship with the county employees and then being able to lean toward me to do something,”
Staley is excited to work with the courthouse and the Shelby County community through his new position.
“I’m just excited to work with the community,” Staley said. “This is the type of support I was looking for, having those relationships with the other county employees and just providing them with everything that they need.”