Tag: diversity

Reflections on the BTS Conference 2021

May 5, 2021 / kateringland / 0 Comments

A view of the galaxy with bright stars and a purple hue.

The month of May is proving to be a whirlwind and we are only 6 days in. But I wanted to take a moment out of my day to write down some of my reflections and experiences from my first ever BTS Conference.I have been to a lot of different conferences over the years, but this one definitely had a different kind of vibe and I loved it. This blog is more my overall reflections of the experience of the conference, rather than getting into the details of the research. If you want to see more of the blow-by-blow of my experience, I’ve added my conference tweets at the bottom of this post.

To get this out of the way…

I will admit that I had some concerns before the conference started given the tension over research in the community and newbie researchers talking to magazine outlets that I shall not name here. A part of my goal for tweeting during the conference (and this blog) was to increase the transparency to which these research activities are to ARMY as a whole. I want concerns and questions about research, the purpose, how it works, what the outcomes are answered before they get to the point that ARMY are only hearing about it after the fact in a media outlet. Fortunately, everyone at the conference (and from what I saw on Twitter) were open, transparent and understanding of one another.

Now the good stuff!

Because the conference was by topic rather than discipline, it had a diverse range of fields and types of people represented (from hobbyists to full professors). For me personally, this is my favorite kind of space to be in. There is something so magical about being in interdisciplinary spaces. Everyone brings their own expertise and backgrounds to the room to discuss specific topics and the conversations that are unleashed are always rewarding. Are there some frustrations and miscommunications? Sure. But by far, diversity and interdisciplinarity is always the best option.

Partially because the audience was both interdisciplinary and not necessarily “academic” (in the ivory tower sense of the word), the content and talks were approachable and accessible. The keynote speech on the first day by Dr. Crystal Anderson set a wonderful tone that I feel pervaded the whole rest of the conference. Right from the start, ARMY as the fans were centered as the experts in this space – not journalists or other academics. And certainly not nameless older abled white male academic whose opinion is so often valued by those outside the community (insert eye roll here).

Researchers studying both BTS and ARMY, at least at this conference, were here because they value both BTS and ARMY – many opened their talks by giving their backgrounds not just as researchers, but as ARMY. It was refreshing. Honestly, between the open passion about being ARMY and the diversity (oh the wonderful diversity) of panelists and attendees really made this the safest I have felt at a conference, ever.

The big take-away from the conference, for me, was: Vulnerability and being open about struggles helps to create a space for us to care for each other (both for BTS and ARMY). In online spaces, there are real people with their own pain and struggles behind the screen. Care is loving yourself & taking care of your community.

Slide with purple text with a title that reads, Balancing Mental Health and Misinformation. The body of the slides says, "Negativity, venting, purpose, belonging, healing... all coexist in the same online space" — A slide from the panel on Balancing Mental Health & Misinformation (in online spaces like Twitter)

The conference organizers (next year’s organizers or other research ARMY organizing these kind of events, feel free to slide me a DM if you want to talk about making the event more accessible) did a wonderful job of setting the tone and I came away with lots of ideas for my own research. I met a lot of other passionate ARMY also interested in furthering the same goals of bringing knowledge to our community. Overall, the whole experience left me motivated and with a feeling that I’m really glad I am both ARMY and researcher. Borahae!

This blog post was fueled by

Twitter feed is not available at the moment.

Diversity Statement

January 15, 2018 / kateringland / 0 Comments

A downloadable PDF version of my diversity statement can be found here.

Accessibility and diversity have always been the cornerstone of my research and teaching philosophies. All my research projects have focused on underrepresented communities, particularly people with disabilities. As a woman who has overcome the adversity associated with having a disability, I recognize the unique challenges inherent in academia. I draw on this personal experience to give me insight to connect with and mentor students from diverse backgrounds. Accordingly, inclusiveness is central to my research, teaching, and service goals.

My desire to create a more equitable and inclusive community has been reflected throughout my research agenda both nationally and internationally. Locally, I have served as an instructor for Technology in the Workplace workshops for young adults with autism for the past four years. These workshops have served approximately 60 students per year, and helped to place high school students with jobs and entry into college. My research has also brought me to work with people with visual impairments in the Washington DC area through the University of Maryland Baltimore County. I assisted the National Federation for the Blind in their national elections with the deployment of more accessible voting machines. Internationally, I have worked in both Mexico and Japan with autistic children, developing affordable software systems to be used in local communities. In each of these projects, my overall goal was to use my expertise to serve the needs of the local community.

I have taken on a variety of leadership roles through participation in community outreach and diversity initiatives. At Washington State University Vancouver, I founded the Women in Computing group. The representation for women in this computer science program was 5%; I was the only woman in my cohort. Therefore, as the inaugural President, I organized an outreach event to promote computing for women, including speaking on a panel about my experiences as a student. There was overwhelmingly positive feedback from the over 40 local community college women in attendance. This past academic year, I stepped into a prominent leadership role and served as the elected Informatics Graduate Student Association President, which included organizing and hosting weekly networking opportunities with notable visiting scholars. As part of my service role in the Assistant Professor position, I would continue working on committees to promote diversity in STEM programs and outreach to potential students.

As an incoming underrepresented PhD student, I participated in the Diverse Educational Community and Doctoral Experience (DECADE) Competitive Edge program. Eager to share my experiences with others, I completed training in the Mentoring Excellence Program and served as a mentor to other underrepresented students entering the Informatics program. My mentees have graduated and gone on to graduate school and into industry. Under my mentorship, one of the women who attended my Women in Computing event successfully completed her four-year degree in Computer Science. Before her degree she held a minimum wage position, but is now working as a software programmer for a large company and plans on returning to graduate school.

Growing up and being in Seattle for much of my life, I was fortunate to live in such a diverse community and that has become integral to the balance I would like to see reflected in the students and staff that I might have the opportunity to work with. In all aspects of my career, research, teaching, and service, I will continue to achieve broader impact through inclusion and accessibility.

old computer monitor with black background, green text that reads "critical failure detected, do not panic.. do not panic... do not panic..."

My Email Signature Explained

December 15, 2017 / kateringland / 1 Comment

I have now borrowed parts of my email signature from so many other people I felt the need to write a short blog article explaining them. I’d also like to give appropriate attribution to those who have given me all these wonderful tips.

My email signature:

Kate Ringland
Informatics PhD Candidate
Social & Technological Action Research Group
ARCS Scholar
University of California, Irvine
kateringland.com

Pronouns: she/her/hers

If you have an accommodation need for a planned meeting, please email me directly and I will do my best to make appropriate arrangements. Should you require any materials sent via email in an alternate format, please let me know.

In an effort to create a more inclusive space in my work, I have taken some small steps (yes, my email signature is a very small, but important step). I indicate my pronouns because I want others to feel safe in disclosing their pronouns to me. If it becomes more common practice to indicate preferred pronouns immediately, at the beginning of a conversation, then there’s less chance for misstep or someone feeling marginalized. One blog about this can be found here: http://www.gradpsychblog.org/signing-on-for-acceptance-can-adding-your-gender-pronouns-to-your-email-signature-make-a-difference/#.WjRItUqnFEY

I also would like to be more inclusive (and accessible!) to those with disabilities. I borrowed the bottom portion of my email signature from a professor, Dr. Jay Timothy Dolmage, who has recently published a book – Academic Ableism: Disability and Higher Education (Corporealities: Discourses Of Disability). You can find out more about that here: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2017/12/07/author-discusses-his-new-book-disability-and-higher-education

I hope this was helpful and if you have any other ideas for how we as individuals can make the academic workplace more inclusive, leave a comment!

UCI Summer Research Symposium 2016

August 11, 2016 / kateringland / 0 Comments

Cover of a booklet for the summer research symposium. Has images of students posing in a group and working together to finish an obstacle course.

Cover to the Summer Research Symposium program.

Today was the end of the summer research programs on the UCI campus. This summer I was a mentor to both an incoming PhD student in the Competitive Edge program and an undergraduate student in the SURF program. The summer ended with a wonderful research symposium where half the students presented their work via oral presentations and the other half presented posters. We then had an awards ceremony lunch where everyone was recognized for the great work they did this summer.

A woman giving a presentation at a podium. To her right is a slide projected with the title "Developing a user friendly system to 3D print minecraft creations for autistic children"

SURF Undergraduate, Aminah Tamimi, giving her presentation on 3d printing from Minecraft.

Woman stands next to a podium and a slide that says "Who watches the overwatchers?"

Competitive Edge PhD Student, Amanda Cullen, giving her presentation on Overwatch.

These programs are a really nice way to help students prepare for graduate school. As someone who participated in a similar program (DREU) as an undergrad and in the Competitive Edge program, I can attest to their usefulness.

As a mentor for students in these programs I am also extremely grateful to the programs for the opportunity to give back and be a mentor. As someone who is passionate about increasing diversity in academia and in STEM programs, I am always excited about chances to “do my bit.” In this instance, working with both Aminah and Amanda was a wonderful experience. Not only are they both hardworking students who are going to go great places, but they are generous with me as I felt my way through my role as a peer mentor. I plan on staying in touch with them (especially Amanda since we sit next to each other in lab) as they progress along their careers and continue to be helpful when I can.

A big thanks to everyone who made this summer fun and full of learning!

Diversity

November 27, 2015 / kateringland / 0 Comments

A handful of experiences and people helped to transform me from a lost undergraduate who was thinking of dropping out, to a successful, ambitious graduate student. I struggled for many years as an underrepresented student, both as a woman and as a student with a disability, to complete my undergraduate degree and find my niche in the world. Now, not only do I want to make a career of researching assistive technology, I also want to be a mentor for those who follow me, just as I had mentors to guide my way.

As the only woman in my undergraduate computing classes, I faced adversity and isolation. I sought support and attended the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing Conference (GHC). Upon learning that I was one of many women facing isolation in their computing courses, I founded an ACM-W Chapter for women in computing at Washington State University Vancouver (WSUV). I felt the need to create greater participation of college women in computing, a support network for them, and a way to mentor freshmen and high school girls. As the chair of the chapter for the first year, I planned a campus-wide event to encourage women to pursue computing careers and spoke at a panel discussion. The event hosted 40 women from campus and the local community and received very positive feedback. The women from the community college who had not considered pursuing a four-year degree until they heard our panel inspired me. I have continued to mentor one young woman who is now pursuing her undergraduate degree in computer science and intends to continue on to graduate school.

On my graduate school campus, University of California Irvine (UCI), I am involved in a similar group: Women in Information and Computer Sciences (WICS). I volunteered with WICS in summer 2013 to mentor middle and high school girls interested in computing. In fall 2013, I also helped start a graduate chapter of this group. As a graduate student representative for UCI, I attended GHC 2014 as a student volunteer. My connections with these groups led me to other opportunities, such as conducting research and presenting at two academic conferences, as well as mentoring underrepresented undergraduates.

Through my experiences with the women in computing groups, I have realized how important mentorship is for those in the early stages of their careers. Through teaching and mentoring, I have been able to ignite my passion for helping others through research with students and also pass along valuable skills that they will use in their future studies. During my first year as a graduate student, I led a diverse team of undergraduates, all of whom are underrepresented minorities, in the development of a whole-body interface application on the Microsoft Kinect for children with autism. I encouraged my team to work together to solve problems and learn how to collaborate effectively. I also coached them in giving a presentation to the lab about their work. Continuing this project, I have expanded the scope of the software, and have begun working with a professor from the Dance Department to create new avenues of therapy for children with autism. One of the undergraduates I mentored has since graduated with a B.S. in Informatics and is now applying to graduate school.

In an effort to serve my local community, I volunteer as an instructor for technology use workshops for young adults with autism who are transitioning into the workplace from high school. In a more formal setting, I have also had the opportunity to be a teaching assistant for undergraduate level courses. As part of my responsibilities, I have worked with students one-on-one, as well as leading discussion sections of more than 40 students. In addition to regular discussion lectures, I also gave a guest lecture to the entire class of 250 students. Knowing the importance of mentorship for undergraduates, these varied teaching experiences increase my desire to seek a position that allows me to continue mentorship my PhD.