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Welcome 2012!

January 9, 2012 by Leave a Comment
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So, we are one full week into the new year.  I suppose I should officially say Happy New Year! I didn't blog as much as I wanted to last year.  I hope that changes in 2012.   Alot happened in 2011, so I wasn't like I didn't have anything about which to write.  I think I simply lost focus of what this website was supposed to be and wasn't sure if some content was appropriate or not.  I am the executive director of a nonprofit that provides educational experiences in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, I do freelance work from time to time, I'm a PhD student again (now at George Mason University), and I, of course, have my own opinions and thoughts about many many things.  More often then not, I wasn't sure if I wanted to write about all that here.  So, I didn't - … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 01 - Learning & Doing Research, 02 - Device Development, 03 - The World Around Me, 04 - Thoughts Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

A Slice of (My) Life: Black Enterprise TV Profile

July 21, 2011 by Leave a Comment
sliceofLife

  Click the photo above to see the clip.     … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 01 - Learning & Doing Research, 03 - The World Around Me, 04 - Thoughts

20 African-American Women in Tech Academia You Should Know

October 15, 2010 by 3 Comments
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Today, I was so proud to discover that I have been featured in an article entitled '20 African-American Women in Tech Academia You Should Know.' I can name many others that should be included in this list (Dr. Quincy Brown - Bowie State, and Dr. Nikki Washington - Howard), but I was still very pleased to be included. Stay tuned as there may be more press coverage coming soon.  ;) … [Read more...]

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Making Myles & Ayesha

September 29, 2010 by Leave a Comment
Myles & Ayesha!

Feb. 5, 2011 - UPDATE:  The Myles & Ayesha Black Inventors Match Game is NOW also on the Android Market. Official Unveiling! Today, I unveiled Myles & Ayesha - the characters, their website, and their first themed educational iPhone app (game) called Myles & Ayesha - Black Inventors Match Game.  They also have a twitter account, so make sure you follow them!  :) I actually just found announcements of the iPhone App on other sites as … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 01 - Learning & Doing Research, 02 - Device Development, 03 - The World Around Me, 04 - Thoughts, iPhone Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

The Best Dissertation is the One That’s Finished!

September 18, 2010 by 3 Comments
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Toward A Dissertation Topic Over the past several weeks, I have been exploring topics for my dissertation.  My experience and passion to-date have been working with technology (specifically technology that supports learning) and children (specifically children of color).  So, naturally, I wanted my dissertation topic to focus on something in this space.  However, over the past few days, after intensive pondering and reflection, I have realized and greatly appreciate the statement that "the best dissertation is the one that's finished" ...and that focusing on these particular issues, at this particular time, may not be as effective as I would like. Realizing this is the culmination of learning a number of things about research, the process of obtaining a PhD, and the difference … [Read more...]

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DML Competition Finalist!

March 30, 2010 by 2 Comments

Now, I have to make a 3 min clip about the project.  I proposed to teach teens in DC how to develop (program) Android apps. This should be fun! … [Read more...]

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Could the flood gates to DIY Electonic Fabrications now be open? I've been waiting…

January 31, 2010 by Leave a Comment

I recently gave a presentation (December 3, 2009) at the weekly brown bag lunch presentations in our lab (HCIL) regarding my current research project - KIDVIEW (website coming soon).  The presentation went fairly well and I received a number of great comments and suggestions in response to my work and its current status at the time.  However, Ben S. suggested that when giving presentations, the presenter should always have a 'take away message' - something that let's the audience know that it was well worth their time to come listen (besides hearing the presenter's speel). After a recent article about how the US should produce and export more to help its economy, I decided to   comment on the challenges I had in finding and obtaining various electronic parts with the US.  Most of the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 01 - Learning & Doing Research, 02 - Device Development, 04 - Thoughts

President Obama Initiates Campaign to Focus on STEM

December 6, 2009 by Leave a Comment

Last week I watched President Obama as he announced new initiatives and partnerships to focus on STEM education nationally.  I was quite excited as this is my life's work!  I am interested to see the country's response and I hope major companies don't simply view this as a method of cashing in, but instead really attempt to work towards better STEM education. My Recent STEM Experience From my own experience, it can be quite difficult to explore and dig deeper regarding technology development in this country, specifically when dealing with hardware (individual parts and pieces).  I've had to order parts from China instead of simply having a store 'down the street' at which to shop for my needs. STEM and Improving Our Economy This is quite an interesting downfall as this country … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 01 - Learning & Doing Research, 03 - The World Around Me

A new look at the 'achievement gap'…

August 18, 2009 by Leave a Comment

I just have one thing to say: I'd love to see/read a research report on the 'achievement gap' in the context of the type of foods eaten by students at both ends of the spectrum. From the US Department of Education's website: http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/studies/gaps/ Achievement Gaps: How Black and White Students in Public Schools Perform in Mathematics and Reading on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) provides detailed information on the size of the achievement gaps between Black and White students at both the national and state level and how those achievement gaps have changed over time. Most of the data in this report is derived from the results of the 2007 main NAEP assessments, and is supplemented with data from the long-term trend … [Read more...]

Filed Under: 01 - Learning & Doing Research

Our Research has Impact!

June 12, 2009 by Leave a Comment

So, in case you didn't know, I am doing research on how children search the web. http://www.cs.umd.edu/hcil/KidsSearch. We - Beth, my research partner, and I have been traveling all around Maryland asking 7, 9, 11 year olds about their computer use and search behavior. We have learned a great deal about how they search...along with how to get around in Maryland. Well, today, I just learned that Google has started to implement one of our design ideas. Check out this video: It's an awesome feeling to see the impact of your research! Special thanks to my Advisor - Dr. Allison Druin! See more here http://blogoscoped.com/archive/2009-03-24-n84.html … [Read more...]

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