diff --git a/pathwaysutils/experimental/shared_pathways_service/isc_pathways.py b/pathwaysutils/experimental/shared_pathways_service/isc_pathways.py
index 3604503..9544e00 100644
--- a/pathwaysutils/experimental/shared_pathways_service/isc_pathways.py
+++ b/pathwaysutils/experimental/shared_pathways_service/isc_pathways.py
@@ -99,6 +99,7 @@ def __init__(
       gcs_bucket: str,
       pathways_service: str,
       expected_tpu_instances: Mapping[Any, Any],
+      proxy_job_name: str | None,
   ):
     """Initializes the TPU manager."""
     self.cluster = cluster
@@ -111,7 +112,7 @@ def __init__(
         random.choices(string.ascii_lowercase + string.digits, k=5)
     )
     user = os.environ.get("USER", "user")
-    self._proxy_job_name = f"isc-proxy-{user}-{suffix}"
+    self._proxy_job_name = proxy_job_name or f"isc-proxy-{user}-{suffix}"
     self._port_forward_process = None
     self._proxy_port = None
 
@@ -194,6 +195,7 @@ def connect(
     gcs_bucket: str,
     pathways_service: str,
     expected_tpu_instances: Mapping[str, int],
+    proxy_job_name: str | None = None,
 ) -> Iterator["_ISCPathways"]:
   """Connects to a Pathways server if the cluster exists. If not, creates it.
 
@@ -205,12 +207,16 @@ def connect(
     pathways_service: The service name and port of the Pathways head pod.
     expected_tpu_instances: A dictionary mapping TPU machine types to the number
       of instances. For example: {"tpuv6e:2x2": 2}
+    proxy_job_name: The name to use for the deployed proxy. If not provided, a
+      random name will be generated.
 
   Yields:
     The Pathways manager.
   """
+  _logger.info("Validating Pathways service and TPU instances...")
   validators.validate_pathways_service(pathways_service)
   validators.validate_tpu_instances(expected_tpu_instances)
+  _logger.info("Validation complete.")
   gke_utils.fetch_cluster_credentials(
       cluster_name=cluster, project_id=project, location=region
   )
@@ -222,5 +228,6 @@ def connect(
       gcs_bucket=gcs_bucket,
       pathways_service=pathways_service,
       expected_tpu_instances=expected_tpu_instances,
+      proxy_job_name=proxy_job_name,
   ) as t:
     yield t