Date: Monday, April 21st, 2025

Time: 12-3pm EST

Location: TSRB 233 or Join via Teams 

Ashley Boone

Ph.D. Student in Human-Centered Computing 

School of Interactive Computing 

Georgia Institute of Technology 

Committee 

Christopher A. Le Dantec (Advisor) - College of Arts, Media, and Design and the Khoury College of Computer Sciences, Northeastern University

Carl DiSalvo (Co-Advisor) - School of Interactive Computing, Georgia Institute of  Technology

Amy Bruckman - School of Interactive Computing, Georgia Institute of  Technology

Betsy DiSalvo - School of Interactive Computing, Georgia Institute of  Technology

Yanni Loukissas – Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts, Georgia Institute of  Technology

Sarah Fox - Human-Computer Interaction Institute, Carnegie Mellon University

Abstract 

My dissertation research examines data production in community-based organizations (CBOs) as a form of proactive data activism. Taking a critical perspective on data, I explore the work of producing and using data to achieve social change at the local level. I have partnered with three CBOs with differing organizational structures and approaches to social change. A clearer understanding of the role of data in these settings provides insights into the nature of data and data work, highlights the opportunities and limitations of using data to pursue social change, informs CBOs using data to pursue their goals, and provides insights for designers to support data activism. I have already completed projects with two community-based organizations, examining their data practices and building tools to support their work. I am proposing ethnographic work, interviews, and design research centered around a third site that will provide a contrasting perspective on local data activism. Finally, I propose a cross-site analysis that synthesizes findings across all three CBOs to provide an overarching perspective on civic data in local community-based organizations.