Chapter Member Directory API

A REST API for managing chapter members built with Node.js and Express.

What It Does

• Add, view, update, and delete chapter members
• Track member info: name, email, major, role, and points
• Data persists to a local JSON file between server restarts
• Input validation with proper HTTP error codes

Tech Stack

• Node.js — runtime
• Express — web framework
• JSON file storage — no database, pure file persistence
• crypto.randomUUID() — built-in unique ID generation

How to Run

npm install
node server.js

Server runs on http://localhost:3000

API Endpoints

Method	Route	Description
GET	/health	Check server is running
GET	/members	Get all members
POST	/members	Add a new member
GET	/members/:id	Get one member by ID
PUT	/members/:id	Update a member
DELETE	/members/:id	Remove a member

Member Object

{
  "id": "auto-generated UUID",
  "name": "Caleb Mpungu",
  "email": "caleb@test.com",
  "major": "Computer Science",
  "role": "President",
  "points": 0
}

Example Requests

Add a member

POST /members
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "name": "Caleb Mpungu",
  "email": "caleb@test.com",
  "major": "Computer Science",
  "role": "President"
}

Update points

PUT /members/:id
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "points": 50
}

Project Structure

Project1API/
  server.js     # entry point, Express setup
  router.js     # all 5 routes
  store.js      # reads/writes members.json
  validate.js   # input validation
  members.json  # data file
  README.md     # this file

What I Learned

• REST API design — structuring routes around resources, not actions
• Express.js — routing, middleware, req/res cycle
• Data modeling — designing a member object before writing any code
• CRUD operations — the backbone of every backend system
• Input validation — handling missing/bad data with proper HTTP status codes (400, 404)
• File persistence — reading and writing JSON with Node's fs module
• Project organization — splitting logic across multiple files (router, store, validate)
• HTTP status codes — 200, 201, 400, 404 and when to use each
• UUID generation — using crypto.randomUUID() for unique IDs without a database

Built By

Saidi "Caleb" Mpungu — CS Student, University of Kentucky