Title: The IT Manager Who Wants To Solve Your Tech Problems

This story is part of Georgetown Faces, a storytelling series that celebrates the beloved figures, unsung heroes and dedicated Hoyas who make our campus special.

David Bervil oversees the IT service desk at the Capitol Campus.

He helps students, faculty and staff reset their passwords, access their emails or networks, and ensures classroom technology is running smoothly. In the first week of class alone, he and his team tackled more than 700 requests for support.

Bervil built his career in computer science: first at IBM and then at MGM National Harbor Hotel & Casino before joining Georgetown in 2021.

But Bervil’s work is a far cry from his original career goal: a police officer. Growing up, he gravitated to the local police in his southern Maryland community and later sought a degree in criminal justice from Prince George’s Community College.

At the same time, Bervil was fascinated by computers. In 1998, as a second-grader, he received his first, a Compaq Windows 95, and taught himself Microsoft programs and how to install video games. In high school, he served as a student aid for his school’s IT department.

“Some kids like sports. Some kids like TV shows. I liked computers,” he said. “It literally felt like the future. It was the closest way I could get in touch with the future.”

In college, he did. After helping a classmate with their computer issue, Bervil started pursuing IT contract jobs. He found he liked how it felt to help someone – without the dangers of police work.Since joining Georgetown as a service specialist, Bervil has been promoted to service desk manager, where he oversees a staff of three and has helped install technology in Georgetown’s newest building on the Capitol Campus, 111 Mass. Ave.

Learn more about Bervil’s career journey and something you might be surprised to learn about his IT team.

I decided on a career in computer science vs. law enforcement when: I was able to see the immediate relief after someone expressed their issues. It happens today, sometimes people can’t log in and they have a deadline in 30 minutes, and you can see the angst and how nervous they are. The moment the issue is resolved, you can feel the weight lifted and there’s a release across the whole room. When that happens, it feels good. You know an impact was made. Being a police officer, it’s a gamble. You don’t know if the call you’re going to get is necessarily good — and people don’t call the police on good days either.

Why I like helping people in my job: We’ve all had certain problems before where, if we had had the support, it’s like a community feeling — you know you’re not by yourself. At the end of the day, it’s knowing that you’re not on your own. You’re able to reach out to someone for additional support.

What brought me to Georgetown: I remember before applying to the position, I was searching through Georgetown’s core values, and I came across the Spirit of Georgetown. As I was reading it, I was thinking, this matches me almost one-to-one as a person. I fully believed what I was reading, and I thought it would be a great fit to be with others who shared the same values. It’s been a blast since. I never looked back.

What brings me joy in my day: the community. After catching up with tickets and emails in the morning, I walk the campus and visit all the high-profile departments. I want to get ahead of any matter that may be happening to make sure everything’s okay. I stick my head in and say, ‘Hey, good morning, everyone. How’s everything? Are you guys experiencing any issues that we may not be aware of?’ Sometimes yes, sometimes no, but almost every time I catch up and have a genuine conversation. That’s what I really appreciate here: The people at the Capitol Campus genuinely care. They care about you as a person. It’s amazing.

Something I wish everyone knew: Every so often, people will come to the office and won’t see us. Maybe there’s an expectation of ‘They’re sitting at the computer. Somebody’s got to be there.’ I wish everyone knew that we don’t just sit. We visit people. Especially if someone says, ‘I’m unable to explain this matter.’ It’s not uncommon for us to have 10,000 steps in a day. With me and my team, we’d much rather be boots-on-the-ground, see you in person and try to resolve the issue that way.

And one more thing: We are more than happy when people reach out to us and ask us questions. We’re here to support. We’re not going to judge you on your question. We’re just here to resolve whatever issue you may have to make your day go by smoother. Your problem is my problem.

My eating recs on the Capitol Campus: The Local makes a really good smashburger. And Whisk, which is our cafe at McDonough [Hall], makes one of the best half-and-halves I’ve ever had in DC. My favorite place to have lunch is at the steps of EBW [Edward Bennett Williams Law Library], where I can look at DC traffic and watch DC be DC. It’s my equivalent of watching nature.

What I love about working in downtown DC: I remember growing up, I always wanted to be one of the people working in DC. Now I’m lucky enough that, if I wanted to, I could walk to the Capitol. Here I am, just down the street from one of the most prestigious places in the U.S. Just last week, I walked to the Botanical Gardens to look at the corpse flower blooming. These are things that I could never do at another organization. These are also things I’ve never thought I could experience. I’m really thankful. I feel pretty blessed.

My technology policy outside of work: Once I leave the office, I have a semi-strict rule of no technology after work. The most I’ll do is check my phone for email to make sure there isn’t an emergency happening. I’m not really a social media [person]. I don’t check my personal emails after work. I try to disassociate from technology as much as I can to kind of cleanse myself.

What gets me out of bed in the morning: My team. I truly appreciate my team. This is the one place where I look forward to seeing my team and seeing how they and their family are doing. We have each other’s backs here. I even come on my remote days just to say hi to my team. That’s how great they are.