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Dissertation Defense: John Robinson, "Building and Sustaining Community Online: An Exploration of the Early Life of Online Communities"
Members of the HCDE & DUB communities are invited to attend a dissertation defense by PhD Candidate John Robinson. Building and Sustaining Community Online: An Exploration of the Early Life of Online Communities, PhD Candidate: John Robinson
Abstract:Many people participate in some form of online community. They may ask questions in a Facebook group, learn makeup tips on TikTok, or share parenting advice on Reddit. They can connect people across the globe, or help mobilize and organize neighborhoods. Still, some communities may not have goals or may struggle to meet their goals. Creators, participants, and even the platforms have a vested interest in helping communities meet their individualized goals.
This work aims to expand our understanding of the participants’ behaviors, which participants do various types of “work” and how communities evolve over time. I take a historical, mixed-methods approach to look at the life of online communities on Reddit, a popular platform that hosts many online…
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Sieg Building (SIG). Campus room: Sieg 433. Accessibility Contact: hcdehelp@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Thursday, May 7, 2026, 8:00 AM – 9:00 AM.
Quick Questions Drop-In Advising: Current HCDE BS Students
Quick questions drop-in advising with our HCDE BS adviser.
Note: These drop-in advising sessions are intended for quick questions and for current HCDE BS students only. Current HCDE BS students seeking a more in-depth advising conversation or prospective HCDE BS students should instead book an advising appointment.
Event interval: Single day event. Online Meeting Link: https://washington.zoom.us/j/98076420726. Campus room: Virtual; login with UWNetID required. Accessibility Contact: Meghan Oxley, what@uw.edu. Event Types: Academics. Target Audience: Current HCDE undergraduates only.
Thursday, May 7, 2026, 2:30 PM – 4:00 PM.
Zoom.
Dissertation Proposal: Georgia Kenderova, "From Incidental to Intentional: Designing Tabletop Role-Playing Games to Support Youth Emotion Regulation in Public Libraries"
The HCDE and DUB communities are invited to attend a dissertation proposal defense by PhD candidate Georgia Kenderova.
From Incidental to Intentional: Designing Tabletop Role-Playing Games to Support Youth Emotion Regulation in Public Libraries, Proposal Abstract:Acquiring emotion regulation skills in childhood can lead to increased well-being and prevent social and behavioral maladjustments in later years. While social emotional learning (SEL) programs in the school context that include emotion regulation components have been shown to bring about positive effects, they are constrained to a formal context where teachers and other trained professionals deliver the program to a consistent group of students. Public libraries, free and accessible informal learning settings that serve diverse populations, offer one context for extending these opportunities beyond regular school hours. Furthermore, tabletop role-playing games (TTRPGs) are already being used in therapeutic and clinical settings to support social…
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Sieg Building (SIG). Campus room: Sieg 429. Accessibility Contact: hcdehelp@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Friday, May 8, 2026, 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM.
HCDE Distinguished Lecture with Laura Forlano - "Designing Consequences: On Living Well with Machines"
The Judith Ramey and Stephanie Rosenbaum Distinguished Lecture Series at the Department of Human Centered Design & Engineering brings leading experts in the fields of human-centered design to the University of Washington to spark new ideas and innovative conversations.
Join us as we welcome Laura Forlano, a Fulbright award-winning and National Science Foundation funded social scientist and design researcher.
Designing Consequences: On Living Well with Machines
Who will live with the social consequences of your designs? And, who will live with the consequences of the consequences? In this talk, I will consider how we might live well with machines drawing on my own “disabled cyborg” life as well as nearly two decades of research in the field of design and related fields including critical disability studies, critical computing, critical creative practice, and critical pedagogy. I will illustrate—both humorously and very existentially—the many ways of interrogating the social consequences of design through…
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Student Union Building (HUB). Campus room: HUB 334. Accessibility Contact: hcdehelp@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars. Special Events.
Monday, May 11, 2026, 3:30 PM – 5:00 PM.
For more info visit www.hcde.washington.edu. Dissertation Defense: Kevin Feng, "Designing for Interactive Systems Powered by Generally Capable AI"
Members of the HCDE & DUB communities are invited to attend a dissertation defense by PhD Candidate Kevin Feng. Designing for Interactive Systems Powered by Generally Capable AI, PhD Candidate: Kevin Feng
Abstract:The key concerns of user experience within human-computer interaction have historically evolved alongside the technology it serves. This dissertation argues that generally capable AI—in particular, large language models (LLMs) and the agentic systems built on top of them—motivate the next such evolution. Specifically, I identify two new dimensions of user experience design for interactive systems powered by generally capable AI: model behavior, the behavioral guidelines and constraints that govern how a model responds to users; and human-AI agency, the distribution of initiative, responsibility, and control between users and AI agents.
I demonstrate that these dimensions can be made tractable through new design practices, tools, and frameworks. For model behavior, I first introduce PolicyPad, a…
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Sieg Building (SIG). Online Meeting Link: https://washington.zoom.us/j/93081217662. Campus room: 233. Accessibility Contact: hcdehelp@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Thursday, May 14, 2026, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
Quick Questions Drop-In Advising: Current HCDE BS Students
Quick questions drop-in advising with our HCDE BS adviser.
Note: These drop-in advising sessions are intended for quick questions and for current HCDE BS students only. Current HCDE BS students seeking a more in-depth advising conversation or prospective HCDE BS students should instead book an advising appointment.
Event interval: Single day event. Online Meeting Link: https://washington.zoom.us/j/98076420726. Campus room: Virtual; login with UWNetID required. Accessibility Contact: Meghan Oxley, what@uw.edu. Event Types: Academics. Target Audience: Current HCDE undergraduates only.
Thursday, May 14, 2026, 2:30 PM – 4:00 PM.
Zoom.
Dissertation Proposal: Shengzhi Wang, "Agency, Adaptation, and Belonging: Technology-Mediated Care and Support for Older Adults "
The HCDE and DUB communities are invited to attend a dissertation proposal defense by PhD candidate Shengzhi Wang.
Agency, Adaptation, and Belonging: Technology-Mediated Care and Support for Older Adults Aging in Place, Proposal Abstract:Older adults represent one of the fastest-growing demographics in the United States, and the majority prefer to age in place, remaining in their own homes and communities as they grow older. As smart home technologies, remote monitoring platforms, and communication tools have proliferated to support this goal, a critical gap has emerged: existing system designs rarely account for the relational and power dynamics that shape how these technologies are actually introduced, configured, and governed within informal care relationships. This dissertation proposal lays out prior work on technology adoption among older adults, the structural asymmetries embedded in smart home governance, and theoretical frameworks including the convoy model of social relations, contextual integrity,…
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Sieg Building (SIG). Online Meeting Link: https://washington.zoom.us/my/shengzhiw. Campus room: Sieg 420. Accessibility Contact: hcdehelp@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Tuesday, May 19, 2026, 9:00 AM – 10:00 AM.
Dissertation Defense: Brett Halperin, "Algorithmic Cinema: On the Production of Oracular Artificial Intelligence"
Members of the HCDE & DUB communities are invited to attend a dissertation defense by PhD Candidate Brett Halperin. Algorithmic Cinema: On the Production of Oracular Artificial Intelligence, PhD Candidate: Brett Halperin
Abstract:This dissertation interrogates how generative models are transforming components of contemporary film aesthetics, labor, and spectatorship. I argue that algorithmic cinema is not adequately understood through the “good” or “bad” binary that structures creative AI ethics debates, but instead through the oracular. I define the oracular as an epistemic awareness of what cannot be known through computing. In the context of cinema, it orients AI as both an instrument of control and an aesthetic medium for encountering epistemic limits. The oracular reframes what AI is, what it does, and how it might be otherwise in film and media industries.
The dissertation begins with the “death of cinema” trope that paradoxically emerges alongside the medium’s birth in 1895. In Chapter One, I trace…
Event interval: Single day event. Online Meeting Link: https://washington.zoom.us/my/bretthalperin. Accessibility Contact: hcdehelp@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Wednesday, May 20, 2026, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM.
Zoom.
Dissertation Defense: Julie Vera, "Weatherfluencers: Trust and Collective Sensemaking in Severe Weather Livestreams"
Members of the HCDE & DUB communities are invited to attend a dissertation defense by PhD Candidate Julie Vera. Weatherfluencers: Trust and Collective Sensemaking in Severe Weather Livestreams, PhD Candidate: Julie Vera
Zoom: (https://washington.zoom.us/j/99579255026) | Passcode: 632933
Abstract:During severe weather, YouTube-native content creators interpret unfolding conditions in real time, offering radar analysis and safety guidance to large audiences. These weatherfluencers operate outside the credentials, professional affiliations, and accountability structures through which the U.S. weather enterprise has historically made its expertise publicly legible. Existing work in sensemaking, trust, crisis informatics, and weather communication does not fully explain how audiences come to work with these creators. This dissertation investigates that problem through three studies of severe weather livestreams. I find that broadcast meteorologists retain advantages on trustworthiness, credibility, and…
Event interval: Single day event. Online Meeting Link: https://washington.zoom.us/j/99579255026. Accessibility Contact: hcdehelp@uw.edu. Event Types: Lectures/Seminars.
Thursday, May 21, 2026, 9:00 AM – 10:00 AM.
Zoom.
Quick Questions Drop-In Advising: Current HCDE BS Students
Quick questions drop-in advising with our HCDE BS adviser.
Note: These drop-in advising sessions are intended for quick questions and for current HCDE BS students only. Current HCDE BS students seeking a more in-depth advising conversation or prospective HCDE BS students should instead book an advising appointment.
Event interval: Single day event. Online Meeting Link: https://washington.zoom.us/j/98076420726. Campus room: Virtual; login with UWNetID required. Accessibility Contact: Meghan Oxley, what@uw.edu. Event Types: Academics. Target Audience: Current HCDE undergraduates only.
Thursday, May 21, 2026, 2:30 PM – 4:00 PM.
Zoom.
[Alumni event] HCDE Alumni Social
Join fellow alumni from the University of Washington’s Department of Human Centered Design & Engineering for a relaxed evening of connection and community at Gasworks Brewing. Reconnect with classmates, meet graduates from across cohorts and industries, and hear the latest updates from HCDE.
This year’s gathering will also feature a special moment: a book launch celebration for HCDE Professor David Ribes. Professor Ribes will give a short talk on his new book, Machineries of Similarity and Difference, which examines decades of HIV/AIDS research and the infrastructures that have supported it—offering insight into how complex systems evolve and shape what we know.
It’s a chance to connect with the HCDE community and get a window into the kind of research happening in the department today.
Please note this event is only for HCDE alumni and not open to current students. Questions? Contact Melissa Ewing at mewing3@uw.edu.
Event interval: Single day event. Accessibility Contact: mewing3@uw.edu. Event Types: Special Events. Target Audience: HCDE alumni (all programs), faculty, staff.
Thursday, May 21, 2026, 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM.
Gasworks Brewing, Seattle.
CREATE Community Day
CREATE Community Day is an annual half-day forum for discussing the concerns about and approaches to sustainable accessibility research and a showcase of research led by CREATE and HuskyADAPT. Student researchers highlight their work and showcase a variety of individual and team projects. Directions and Parking , Zoom link to be provided , Accessibility: Building FAQs | Email, Panel topics and speakers are being finalized and will be announced soon.
1:15–2:30 p.m. - Community Day panel discussion #1 (hybrid)
2:45–4:00 p.m. - Community Day panel discussion #2 (hybrid)
4:00–5:00 p.m. - Research Showcase co-hosted with HuskyADAPT (in-person only).
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Bill & Melinda Gates Center for Computer Science & Engineering (CSE2). Campus room: Zillow Commons. Accessibility Contact: oliviapb@uw.edu. Event Types: Academics. Diversity Equity Inclusion. Exhibits. Information Sessions. Meetings. Special Events. Target Audience: Anyone interested in research on accessible technology & making the world accessible through tech.
Wednesday, May 27, 2026, 1:00 PM – 4:00 PM.
For more info visit create.uw.edu. CREATE & HuskyADAPT Research Showcase
The closing event for CREATE’s Community Day, this Research Showcase is co-sponsored by HuskyADAPT. Approximately 30 undergraduate and graduate student teams from at least eight majors/programs and all three UW campuses share their projects, covering a wide range of research.
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Bill & Melinda Gates Center for Computer Science & Engineering (CSE2). Campus room: Zillow Commons. Accessibility Contact: oliviapb@uw.edu. Event Types: Academics. Diversity Equity Inclusion. Exhibits. Special Events. Student Activities. Target Audience: Anyone interested in research on accessible technology and making the world accessible through tech.
Wednesday, May 27, 2026, 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM.
For more info visit create.uw.edu. Quick Questions Drop-In Advising: Current HCDE BS Students
Quick questions drop-in advising with our HCDE BS adviser.
Note: These drop-in advising sessions are intended for quick questions and for current HCDE BS students only. Current HCDE BS students seeking a more in-depth advising conversation or prospective HCDE BS students should instead book an advising appointment.
Event interval: Single day event. Online Meeting Link: https://washington.zoom.us/j/98076420726. Campus room: Virtual; login with UWNetID required. Accessibility Contact: Meghan Oxley, what@uw.edu. Event Types: Academics. Target Audience: Current HCDE undergraduates only.
Thursday, May 28, 2026, 2:30 PM – 4:00 PM.
Zoom.
HCDE Capstone Showcase
Join the University of Washington's Department of Human Centered Design & Engineering for our 2026 Capstone Showcase.
Student teams solve real-world problems through a human-centered lens. Projects are proposed by industry sponsors or driven by an interest from the students on the team. Details about projects will be added as the showcase nears.
Questions? Contact Melissa Ewing at mewing3@uw.edu.
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Student Union Building (HUB). Campus room: HUB Ballroom. Accessibility Contact: mewing3@uw.edu. Event Types: Exhibits. Special Events.
Wednesday, June 3, 2026, 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM.
For more info visit www.hcde.washington.edu. Quick Questions Drop-In Advising: Current HCDE BS Students
Quick questions drop-in advising with our HCDE BS adviser.
Note: These drop-in advising sessions are intended for quick questions and for current HCDE BS students only. Current HCDE BS students seeking a more in-depth advising conversation or prospective HCDE BS students should instead book an advising appointment.
Event interval: Single day event. Online Meeting Link: https://washington.zoom.us/j/98076420726. Campus room: Virtual; login with UWNetID required. Accessibility Contact: Meghan Oxley, what@uw.edu. Event Types: Academics. Target Audience: Current HCDE undergraduates only.
Friday, June 5, 2026, 2:30 PM – 4:00 PM.
Zoom.
HCDE Graduation and Awards Ceremony
Join the University of Washington Department of Human Centered Design & Engineering for the 2026 HCDE Graduation & Awards Ceremony celebrating graduating BS, MS, and PhD students.
The ceremony will include remarks from HCDE Chair Julie Kientz, a graduation address by Ram Shankar Siva Kumar, and the presentation of student awards recognizing academic excellence, leadership, innovation, and contributions to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
View full ceremony details here ».
Event interval: Single day event. Campus location: Student Union Building (HUB). Campus room: Ballroom. Accessibility Contact: mewing3@uw.edu. Event Types: Ceremonies. Target Audience: HCDE graduating bachelor's, master's, and PhD students, their families and friends.
Friday, June 12, 2026, 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM.
For more info visit hcde.uw.edu. HCDE PhD Recognition Ceremony
Recognition Ceremony honoring HCDE PhD Graduates with faculty advisors and invited guests. Closed Event.
Event interval: Single day event. Campus room: tbd. Accessibility Contact: Kathleen Rascon, khorenst@uw.edu. Event Types: Ceremonies.
Friday, June 12, 2026, 12:30 PM – 3:00 PM.