Lab Members
Dr. Nell O’Rourke
Associate Professor in Computer Science and the Learning Sciences
Nell is an Associate Professor in Computer Science and the Learning Sciences at Northwestern University, where she co-directs the interdisciplinary Delta Lab. Her research explores the design of novel computational systems to support motivation and learning in STEM domains. Recent projects include studying student beliefs about programming ability in introductory computer science courses, designing game mechanics that encourage students to practice problem-solving skills, and developing web inspection tools that allow novice developers to learn directly from authentic professional websites. She received her Ph.D. in Computer Science and Engineering from the University of Washington, where she was a member of the Center for Game Science and DUB. When not at work, she loves visiting local playgrounds, beaches, and museums with her family Her interventions have been used by over 100,000 students online, adopted by companies, and integrated into classrooms. Her work has been recognized through an NSF CAREER Award, a Google Systems Research Award, and best paper awards and nominations at SIGCSE, UIST, and CHI.
Dr. Haoqi Zhang
Associate Professor in Computer Science and Design
Haoqi is an Associate Professor in Computer Science and Design and founder and director of the Design, Technology, and Research (DTR) program, which provides an original model for research training for over 100 graduate and undergraduate students. His research advances the design of integrated socio-technical models that solve complex problems and advance human values. His work bridges the fields of Human-Computer Interaction, Artificial Intelligence, Social & Crowd Computing, Learning Science, and Decision Science. Haoqi received his PhD in Computer Science and BA in Computer Science and Economics from Harvard University. He is the proud parent of Stella (@stellystarship), an Australian Shepard. His work is generously supported by grants from the National Science Foundation in Cyber-Human Systems, Cyberlearning, and the Research Initiation Initiative; the Buffett Institute of Global Affairs; and the Center for Advancing Safety in Machine Intelligence.
Dr. Matt Easterday
Associate Professor in the Learning Sciences
Matt Easterday is an Associate Professor at the School of Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University. His research focuses on technology for the new civics – producing scientifically supported educational technology to create informed and engaged citizens who can solve the serious policy problems facing our society such as poverty, global warming, and militarism. He received his PhD in 2010 from the Human-Computer Interaction Institute at Carnegie Mellon University, where he was a fellow in the Institute for Educational Science’s Program for Interdisciplinary Educational Research and a Siebel Scholar. He is the director of PB Evanston, a student and community-led organization that aims to institutionalize participatory budgeting in Evanston by training volunteers and advising city officials. He is one of the most effective outreach volunteers with over 500 Evanstonians recruited! He is a Northwestern Center for Civic Engagement Faculty Fellow, a Northwestern Searle Center for Teaching Excellence Fellow, and winner of the 2015 Northwestern Ver Steeg Graduate Advising Award. [website]
Dr. Liz Gerber
Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Communication Studies
Liz is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Communication Studies, Co-Director of the Center for Human Computer Interaction + Design, Faculty Founder of Design for America, and Co-Director of Delta Lab. She designs and implements new social technologies to enable new ways to solve problems with diverse stakeholders and studies how the technologies change the roles stakeholders play and the new organizations needed for this work. Her work cuts across design, human-computer interaction, and organizational studies and is informed by her formal training in product design, management science, and studio art at Stanford University and Dartmouth College. When not at work, she loves being on the lake or in the mountains with friends and family. She is the recipient of the 2022 ACM Social Impact Award and the 2018 Smithsonian’s Cooper Hewitt Award for Institutional Excellence. Her work has been featured in outlets including NPR, ABC, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Forbes, The Guardian, Harvard Business Review, and Wired.
Ayse Hunt
Ph.D. Candidate in Computer Science + Learning Sciences
Advised by Dr. Nell O’Rourke
Ayse is a 5th year PhD student in the Computer Science and Learning Science program advised by Eleanor O’Rourke. Currently, she is researching students’ metacognitive practices in introductory CS courses. She is interested the relationship between metacognitive practices and the debugging process. In the past, Ayse worked with museums to research, design, and evaluate educational technology in their exhibits. Outside of work, she enjoys hanging out on the lakefront and baking birthday cakes for friends and family. [website]
Caryn Tran
Ph.D. Candidate in Computer Science + Learning Sciences
Advised by Dr. Nell O’Rourke
Caryn is a 5th year PhD student in the Joint Program in Computer Science and Learning Sciences at Northwestern, advised by Professor Eleanor O’Rourke. Caryn researches and designs educational programming tools for K-12 computer science. She is interested in student-centered learning and design; more specifically, how to provide students with authentic learning experiences. Her work is informed by her experiences as a middle school computer science teacher and ed-tech developer; as well as her undergraduate and master’s education in computer science and artificial intelligence from UC Berkeley. In her free time, Caryn loves dancing, playing tennis, and chasing her cat, Gandalf.
Morgan Wu
Ph.D. Candidate in Learning Sciences
Advised by Dr. Matt Easterday
Morgan is a 4th year PhD student in the Learning Sciences program advised by Professor Matt Easterday. Her research focuses on deliberative negotiation, delving from the process in deliberation for a better understanding of the linkage problems that impede deliberation outcomes from being implemented. Her research interest lies on learning how civic education can help people to be effective citizens. Morgan is the recipient of a government scholarship from Ministry of Education, Taiwan from 2021 to 2025.
Melissa Chen
Ph.D. Candidate in Computer Science
Advised by Dr. Nell O’Rourke
Melissa is a 4th year PhD student in the Computer Science program advised by Professor Eleanor O’Rourke. Her current work is on understanding student self-efficacy and self-assessments, with a focus on understanding why students think they are doing poorly in common moments in the programming process, as well as how to build social and technical interventions that operate at-scale to support students in making accurate self-assessments. Prior to starting at Northwestern, Melissa received her BS in Computer Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Outside of research, she enjoys exploring Evanston and Chicago with friends, reading, and learning how to make good coffee. [website]
Yinmiao Li
Ph.D. Candidate in Computer Science + Learning Sciences
Advised by Dr. Nell O’Rourke and Dr. Michael Horn
Yinmiao Li is a 4th year PhD student at Northwestern University’s Joint Program in Computer Science and Learning Sciences, advised by Professor Eleanor O’Rourke and Professor Michael Horn. Her research centers around understanding the connection between metacognition, emotion, and motivation in introductory computing education, as well as building interventions to support students in overcoming negative emotional and metacognitive experiences while programming. Yinmiao’s background includes formal training in Interactive Media Arts and Human-computer interaction from New York University and Carnegie Mellon University. Outside of her work, she enjoys music and spending time outdoors. [website]
Kristin Fasiang
Ph.D. Student in Computer Science + Learning Sciences
Advised by Dr. Nell O’Rourke
Kristin is a 3rd year PhD student in the Joint Computer Science and Learning Sciences Program advised by Professor Eleanor O’Rourke. Her research centers on understanding how student identity affects self-assessments and belonging at the introductory computer science level. Prior to starting at Northwestern, Kristin earned undergraduate degrees in math and secondary education, and taught both math and computer science at the high school level. Outside of work, she loves tending her (many) houseplants, relaxing on Lake Michigan’s beaches, and listening to audiobooks.
Mora Labisi
Ph.D. Student in Computer Science + Learning Sciences
Advised by Dr. Nell O’Rourke
Mora, a 2nd year PhD Student in the Computer Science + Learning Sciences program and NSF CSGrad4US Fellow, is passionate about bridging the gap between computer science education and real-world software engineering. Prior to embarking on her Ph.D. journey, Mora was crafting code and systems as a Software Engineer at Starbucks. When not immersed in her work, Mora delights in caring for her hamsters, diving into language learning, singing at karaoke, and conducting monthly trivia nights for a small but mighty international group of friends!
Aidan Fitzsimons
Ph.D. Candidate in Technology and Social Behavior (Computer Science + Communications)
Advised by Dr. Liz Gerber and Dr. Duri Long
Aidan is a 3rd PhD student in the Technology and Social Behavior program at Northwestern co-advised by Dr. Liz Gerber and Dr. Duri Long in the Creative Interfaces Research + Design Studio. Aidan studies how to develop co-writing tools to improve reflective and personal writing, the process of multi-stakeholder participatory design, and the legal implications of HCI theory. Before coming to Northwestern, Aidan studied math and public policy at Duke University and worked for two years as an AI ethics fellow in the Duke Law School. [website]
Ph.D. Alumni
Kapil Garg, Postdoctoral Scholar in Informatics and Computer Science, UC Irvine
Evey Huang, Postdoctoral Scholar in Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern
Gus Umbelino, Design Researcher in Centre for Democracy Studies Aarau, University of Zurich
Garrett Hedman, Former Computer Science Content Specialist for Chicago Public Schools
Gobi Dasu, Co-Founder of LD Talent and New Project in Stealth
Daniel Rees Lewis, Senior UX Researcher, Frontiers
Emily Harburg, Co-Founder and CEO of PairUp
Eureka Foong, UX Researcher, YouTube
Jamie Gorson Benario, UX Researcher, Google
Josh Hibschman, Managing Director of AI at Tentorium Capital
Julie Hui, Assistant Professor in School of Information, University of Michigan
Kristine Lu, Assistant Professor in Art + Design, Northeastern University
Leesha Maliakal Shah, Assistant Professor in Computer Science, Northeastern Illinois University
Mike Greenberg, Former UX Researcher, Meta
Ryan Louie, Postdoctoral Scholar in Computer Science, Stanford University
Spencer Carlson, Senior Researcher, Netflix
Yongsung Kim, Machine Learning Engineer, Adobe