Unsung Heroes - IT Officers – Mr Mukhiddin Ibodullaev and Mr Callum Finaughty.

Unsung Heroes - IT Officers – Mr Mukhiddin Ibodullaev and Mr Callum Finaughty. Mr Mukhiddin has been working at BST since December2018 and Mr Callum since September 2020 as our IT Officers. Over the last couple of years, the role of IT in education has become increasingly important and at BST we certainly couldn’t manage without this dynamic duo. Most staff and students will rarely see them as their offices are based in the dungeons (Kalandar basement) but whenever we need them an email to IT Support is usually answered within the hour – even on weekends!

Mr Mukhiddin has been working at BST since December2018 and Mr Callum since September 2020 as our IT Officers. Over the last couple of years, the role of IT in education has become increasingly important and at BST we certainly couldn’t manage without this dynamic duo. Most staff and students will rarely see them as their offices are based in the dungeons (Kalandar basement) but whenever we need them an email to IT Support is usually answered within the hour – even on weekends! 

Mr Mukhiddin was born in Al Khorezm and as a youngster wanted to become a lawyer. However, destiny had something else planned and following qualifications in Accounting he began pursuing a Masters in IT and then even taught IT classes to college students. He then worked in IT roles at universities and schools before joining BST. 

Mr Mukhiddin and Mr Callum’s work includes configuring and maintaining the network including the devices that reside on it, purchasing, IT support for students and staff as well as system management of Seesaw and iSAMS. They particularly enjoy connecting with teachers and students and understanding how IT may be optimised within education.
Mr Mukhiddin is the middle child and a family man. In his spare time he loves to spend time with his three daughters, Soliha (7), Sohiba (6) and Mukhlisa (4), eating Khazan Kabab and improving his knowledge of Arabic so he may understand the Quran better. In future, he would like to travel to the US and Middle East and also pick up boxing again to become fitter.
Mr Callum is also a middle child and was born in South Africa and then moved to the UK at age 5. He gladly (terrible weather in UK) returned back to South Africa at the age of 13. Mr Callum always enjoyed figuring things out and wanted to pursue IT at university. However, as the IT programme was full he studied Civil Engineering instead and then worked in the role for 7 years. One of his memorable projects was the £15 million Century City development where he implemented piping, water lines and built roads. Mr Callum then travelled to South Korea and Uzbelistan to teach English to foreign students for a number of years before falling back into his first passion – IT.
In his spare time Mr Callum used to love playing Rugby, dirt biking and attending Motorcross and it was with a heavy heart that he gave that up when he met his better half, Ms Kayleigh. He now enjoys buying gadgets as well as playing the guitar in his spare time. However, looking after his 11 month daughter Storm and two dogs means he has very little spare time.

In the future, Mr Callum would love to move back to Africa. He misses holidaying on the Zambizi river where he could nod at the Hippos, Crocodiles and Monkeys, biking through the bush, dunes and tracks, going on Safari in beautiful landscapes and especially the food – he would die for Gem Squash and Peppercorn Pie.

Both Mr Mukhiddin and Mr Callum are very patient and curious and this helps them keep up to date with the ever changing IT world. They are currently involved in rolling out new applications and upgrades, implementing Firewalls and web filters to safeguard against hacking and improving IT for better experiences for our students and staff. If you see them looking tired around campus, please offer them a smile and maybe some caffeine – BST really couldn’t function without these hidden hero’s.