Ari Schlesinger
 

Ari Schlesinger

Ari is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at the University of Georgia (UGA). She obtained her PhD in Human-Centered Computing (HCC) at the Georgia Institute of Technology in the School of Interactive Computing. Her research focuses on reducing discrimination in tech, with applications in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Computer Science (CS) broadly.

Picture of Ari Schlesinger, smiling and looking at the camera while outdoors.
 
 
 

Want to help make tech a safer space?

I’m always looking for students and collaborators! Please reach out if you’re interested in working together. Check out the Work With Me page for information on how to connect.

Research Interests

Computers don’t exist without humans. How does computing include humanity? From user interface design to software engineering to computer science classrooms, my research agenda is focused on socially engaged computation to effect equitable social change and technological advancement. I investigate the ways social issues become encoded in technical ecosystems with the goal of making harm-reduction strategies accessible to the general public, the research community, and the tech industry. My work is about developing practices that center anti-discrimination, intersectionality, and equity in consistent and sustainable ways. From specific lines of code to abstract structures of theory, we can work together to develop more just futures.

To learn more about where I've been, check out my bio or my CV.

 
 

advancing
anti-discrimination in tech

 
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News

08.01.23 Hello Athens! I’m officially joining the School of Computing at the University of Georgia as an Assistant Professor. Can’t wait to see what comes next at UGA.

07.28.23 Good news everyone. I’ve successfully defended my PhD dissertation :D

10.10.22 I’m on the academic job market!

06.28.22 I’m ABD. Excited to keep working on my dissertation, Computing’s Discrimination Problem, with the support of my wonderful committee: Annie I. Antón, Rosa Arriaga, Andrea Grimes Parker, Ben Wiedermann, and Alex Taylor.

04.07.22 A paper I worked on with has been published at CSCW. Check out ImageDEPO: Towards Gradual Decentralization of Online Social Networks using Decentralized Privacy Overlays

03.30.21 I received the Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant Award from the College of Computing at Georgia Tech! Wow :D Thanks to everyone who helped make that class such a great environment, I really enjoyed working with all of you.

01.20.20 Heading to Virginia to Participate in and Speak at the NSF/NSERC Workshop on Inclusive and Intersectional Research and Analysis in Engineering and Computer Science in early Februrary

09.03.19 Interested in Racial Bias in Natural Language Processing? Check out Oxford Insights Report I contributed to, published in August, 2019.

05.03.19 Good news, I’m participating on a panel at McMaster University as part of the first Center for Networked Media and Performance (CNMAP) Symposium. More good news: there’s a live stream, so you can download the program and join in on the fun!

07.28.18 Excited to announce I'm a finalist for this year's GVU Foley Scholars. It's an honor to be recognized alongside my amazing colleagues.  

06.13.18 Come see me talk in St. Louis this year at PWLConf on September 26 2018, the day before Strange Loop (where I'll be hanging out for a few days).

04.03.18 HCIC (Human Computer Interaction Consortium) here I come. I've been accepted to participate in this year's HCIC focused on Human-Computer Interaction + AI.  

02.12.18 Look out for the Georgia Tech Women's Leadership Conference, Saturday, March 10, 2018, where I'll be moderating the Women in Tech Panel. 

02.09.18 I've received a Best Paper Award for my forthcoming CHI 2018 paper, "Let's Talk About Race: Identity, Chatbots, and AI", written by me, Kenton O'Hara, and Alex Taylor.

12.11.17 The paper I wrote with Kenton O'Hara and Alex Taylor has been conditionally accepted to CHI 2018—"Let's Talk About Race: Identity, Chatbots, and AI".

 
 

Connecting the Dots

Before I started working on my PhD at Georgia Tech, I was absorbing strategies, theories, and methods from a bunch of different disciplines with a focus on technology and social change. At the end of the day, I'm interested in building technology from the inside out that is tailored to the needs and values of individual communities.

Too many things in this world have discrimination built into their code. We can do better. If you’re interested in collaborating, please say hello! I look forward to seeing what we can do together.

 
 
 

from specific lines of code to abstract structures of theories

 
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